KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress leader Dr. Shekhar Koirala has expressed shock over the continued participation of a minister accused of bribery in Cabinet meetings, suggesting that the individual should have been dismissed instead.
Taking to Facebook on Tuesday morning, Koirala indirectly referred to Minister for Federal Affairs and General Administration Rajkumar Gupta, who has been embroiled in a high-profile bribery scandal.
Despite what he describes as clear evidence against the minister, Koirala criticized the prime minister for allowing Gupta to remain in the Cabinet by “sweet-talking” his way through the controversy.
“What we’re seeing is shocking,” Koirala wrote. “A middleman delivers a suitcase full of bribe money to the minister’s quarters early in the morning. When evidence surfaces, instead of being dismissed, the minister chats pleasantly with the prime minister and attends the Cabinet meeting.”
Koirala also questioned the role of his own party, Nepali Congress, in the matter, accusing it of becoming a passive witness rather than holding its coalition partners accountable.
“The opposition performs a ritualistic call for resignation in Parliament, and we—the Nepali Congress, as coalition partners—stand by as silent spectators,” he wrote.
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