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Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak is under pressure from opposition parties to resign, taking moral responsibility for last week’s reported visit visa scam. Though no concrete evidence of Lekhak’s involvement has emerged, opposition parties are demanding his resignation and the formation of a high-level judicial commission to investigate the issue.

Opposition parties, particularly the CPN (Maoist Center), Rastriya Swatantra Party, and CPN (Unified Socialist), obstructed Parliament on Tuesday and Wednesday over the matter. Within his party, the Nepali Congress (NC), Lekhak is known as a politician with a clean image and integrity, having played a pivotal role in Nepal’s peace and constitution-drafting process. A key architect of the current NC-UML coalition, Lekhak is a close confidant of NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba. The NC insists he should be allowed to speak in Parliament to clarify the accusations, but opposition parties remain adamant about his resignation.

The parliamentary obstruction comes at a critical time—the government is set to present its budget on May 29, the constitutionally mandated deadline. Opposition parties have hinted they may allow the budget presentation, acknowledging that failure to do so could trigger a constitutional crisis.

Lekhak faces pressure not only from opposition parties but also from within his own party. Senior NC leader Shekhar Koirala publicly suggested he resign to facilitate an independent probe into the scam. On Wednesday, NC General Secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa stated that the home minister should step down, calling it a “political and moral issue.” Despite internal dissent, the NC’s official stance is that Lekhak will not resign, nor will a judicial commission be formed. NC Chief Whip Shyam Ghimire said that since only some officials have been implicated so far, seeking home minister’s resignation is unjustified.

On May 21, Tirtha Raj Bhattarai, chief of the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) Immigration Office, was interrogated by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) for allegedly facilitating illegal foreign travel on visit visas. Officials describe the scam as potentially involving billions, with suspicions of senior home ministry officials’ involvement. Bhattarai’s abrupt transfer from the airport to the home ministry—followed by his arrest the next day—has raised questions. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and the NC continue to support Lekhak, citing a lack of direct evidence linking him to the case. However, prolonged parliamentary disruption could intensify pressure for his resignation.

The Home Ministry’s reputation has suffered in recent years due to successive corruption scandals. Former Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand faces charges in the fake Bhutanese refugee scandal, alongside the home secretary and other high-level officials. Former Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane is also embroiled in cases involving cooperative fraud and passport misuse. After being denied the chance to speak in Parliament, Lekhak held a press conference to defend his position on Wednesday.

"It is unjust to drag leadership into controversy before the CIAA completes its investigation," he said. "I will not resign based on media and social media reports. No complaints have been filed against me. I deserve justice like any ordinary citizen." He also argued that past investigations into senior Home Ministry officials and the chief secretary did not prompt calls for political leadership to step down. Lekhak assured the Home Ministry would fully cooperate with the CIAA’s probe.

Former Nepali Congress lawmaker Mohammad Aftab Alam, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in connection with an explosion and the subsequent murder of at least 23 persons in Rautahat at Fradahawa in Rajpur, Rautahat April 9, 2008, has been released from jail on Wednesday.

Jailer Bhimraj Koirala of Nakkhu prison said that Alam was released from the prison.

Earlier, the Rautahat District Court had found Alam guilty of the Rajpur bomb blast and the subsequent murder and sentenced him to life imprisonment.

The Janakpur High Court today acquitted Alam, overturning the District Court's decision,  the court's Registrar Deepak Bhandari shared.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of New Zealand Winston Peters paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.

During the meeting held at the official residence of the Prime Minister in Baluwatar on Wednesday, matters of strengthening bilateral interests, mutual relations and multifaceted collaboration were discussed, while recognising that there is immense potential for cooperation in the sectors of agriculture, tourism, education and investment.

On the occasion, Prime Minister Oli briefed that the incumbent government had given priority to stability, development, good governance, social justice and social transformation along with the national ambition of 'Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali'.   

Similarly, the visiting Deputy Prime Minister Peters stressed the need of boosting the collaboration between the two countries even in the international forums for Nepal's development and prosperity. 

High-ranking officials of the Foreign Ministry were also present in the meeting.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 16. 55  points to close at 2,692. 18 points on Wednesday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 3. 95 points to close at 460. 92 points.

A total of 20,759,547-unit shares of 323 companies were traded for Rs 8. 58 billion.

Meanwhile, Om Megashree Pharmaceuticals Limited (OMPL) was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 10. 00 percent.

Likewise, Barahi Hydropower Public Limited (BHPL) was the top loser as its price fell by 6. 84 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 1. 51 trillion.

Opposition parties including the CPN (Maoist Centre) concluded that Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak should step down from the post for his alleged involvement in the 'visit visa' scam. 

A meeting of the opposition parties held at the Federal Parliament Building in New Baneshwor today accused the Home Minister of being responsible for the irregularities.  

Aam Janata Party Chair Prabhu Sah, who was also present in the meeting, said that the House proceedings will be halted until the Home Minister resigns. 

Meanwhile, Maoist Centre Chairperson Pushpa Kamal Dahal  and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli held a telephonic conversation amidst the meeting. 

The Dhangadhi-Salyan road section along the Rapti Highway has been obstructed due to a landslide at  Chorkhola in Kapurkot Rural Municipality-3, Salyan. 

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police at the Salyan District Police Office Keshar Neupane, efforts are on to remove the landslide debris by using an excavator. 

Police have urged small vehicles to use alternative routes via Kapurkot-Lamidanda and Kapurkot-Pakchapani-Satbasa. 

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand Winston Peters is arriving in Kathmandu this afternoon on a two-day official visit to Nepal. 

The Deputy Prime Minister will separately pay courtesy calls on President Ram Chandra Paudel and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli today, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed. 

Similarly, the Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand will hold a bilateral meeting with Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba this evening. 

After the meeting, there will be a joint press conference, and in his honor, Foreign Minister  Rana will host a dinner. 

This is the first ever visit by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of New Zealand to Nepal. 

The country now is under the influence of western and local winds. 

Additionally, there is a partial influence of the vapour-rich winds coming from the Bay of Bengal, according to the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. 

This afternoon, there will be partial to generally cloudy weather in the hilly areas of the Lumbini Province and other parts of the country, while remaining areas will have clear weather. 

In some places of the hilly region, there is a possibility of light to moderate rain with thunder and lightning. Light rain and snowfall is likely to occur in one or two places in the high mountainous and hilly regions of the country. 

According to the Department, the Bagmati and Gandaki Provinces, along with other hilly areas, will experience partial to generally cloudy weather, while other areas will have clear weather. 

Some places of the hilly areas of Bagmati and Gandaki Provinces have chances of light to moderate rain with thunder and lightning. There may be light rain with snowfall in one or two places in the high mountainous region.