INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KATHMANDU, APRIL 17The employees of Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) have staged a protest
against the decision of the government to suspend the central bank's Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari.
continues its protest against Deuba
Political cadres continue protest
against MCC
Demanding the government to withdraw
its action against the governor, the Central Committee of NRB Employees Union today picketed the central bank's head office in Baluwatar.
The agitated staffer of the NRB even installed black banners that read: 'Stop the direct interference in the central bank's
autonomy', 'Immediately reverse the action taken against the governor on baseless and fictitious allegations', 'Immediately formulate and
implement a special policy for the salvation of the declining national economy', among others at the central and other offices of the
central bank.According to the President of the NRB Employees' Union, Rudra Prasad Timsina, the NRB leadership has come under attack as the
leaders have misused the financial system with influence of financial mafias.Stating that such allegations have been made against the
governors in the past as well, Timsina said that the employees have always taken part in protest programmes to protect the autonomy of the
central bank.Reminding that the employees of NRB had knocked on the doors of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority to
the Supreme Court to protest against the dismissal and suspension of former governors: Kalyan Bikram Adhikari, Tilak Bahadur Rawal and Vijay
Nath Bhattarai by the then governments, Timsina has requested the government to withdraw the action taken against the governor.The
government suspended NRB Governor Adhikari on April 8 following a Cabinet decision to form an investigation committee to probe various
allegations levelled against him, including leaking information to the media regarding the finance ministry's decision to prohibit import of
luxury goods.Adhikari was appointed governor of the central bank by the erstwhile Oli government in the April of 2020, prior to which he had
served as the chief executive officer of the Investment Board Nepal.However, Finance Minister Janardan Sharma has said that the action to
suspend the governor was legal and as per the NRB Act.A version of this article appears in the print on April 18, 2022, of The Himalayan
This article first appeared/also appeared in https://thehimalayantimes.com