Nepal: Interior minister elected on anti-corruption platform steps down amid financial investigation

Nepal's Minister of Home Affairs Sudan Gurung resigned from his position on Wednesday, saying he was stepping down to ensure a "fair investigation" of his financial affairs. 

He's the second minister in the new government led by Prime Minister Balendra Shah to lose his position since the former rapper and Kathmandu mayor won elections last month on the back of anti-corruption youth protests that toppled the previous government. 

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Gurung said he had "taken seriously" public questions and comments regarding his stock market investments and other financial issues. The 38-year-old said that he was stepping down from his role as interior minister to ensure an impartial investigation and avoid any conflict of interest.

"For me, morality is greater than office, and there is no greater power than public trust," Gurung wrote on Facebook. "The Gen Z movement that is rising in the country today demanding good governance, transparency and accountability has also given the same message." 

Gurung came into the spotlight both during the so-called Gen Z protests, in which he played a central role, and then after becoming interior minister. 

Soon after his appointment, he ordered the arrests of former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and his predecessor as interior minister, Ramesh Lehkak, for their roles in the security forces' crackdown on protesters that led to 46 deaths. 

"If anyone questions the government formed on the basis of the blood and sacrifice of my 46 brothers and sisters, the answer is morality," Gurung said in Wednesday's statement.

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Dipa Dahal, an aide to new Prime Minister Balendra Shah, told the Reuters news agency that Gurung had submitted his resignation to the prime minister, "who will look after the home ministry for now."

Shah, 35, became prime minister when his three-year-old Rastriya Swatantra Party, which has promised to control corruption and provide good governance and transparency, comfortably won last month's parliamentary election, claiming 182 of 275 available seats.

The former rapper had gained popularity during his three-year stint as mayor of the capital Kathmandu for his reforms. 

Earlier this month, Shah dismissed his labor minister, Dipak Kumar Sah, saying he had misused "the dignity of his position" to get his wife appointed as a member of the board of directors of the health insurance board. 

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Edited by: Alex Berry