The Speaker of Nepal’s House of Representatives has resigned after allegations of sexual assault against a parliamentary office employee.
Krishna Bahadur Mahara was forced to resign from his position by the ruling Nepal Communist Party on Tuesday.
The 61- year- old has denied the allegations.
In a letter addressed to the Deputy speaker of the house, Mr Mahara said he was stepping aside from the Speaker’s position on “moral grounds” to facilitate fair and independent investigations over the allegations, which he says “raises serious questions about his character”.
He says his resignation will remain until the investigation is completed.
The issue came to a head after a local media published claims by a female parliamentary secretariat employee, who accused the senior Communist party leader of sexually assaulting her at her rented apartment in the capital Kathmandu.
In the news report, Mr Mahara is alleged to have been intoxicated when he arrived at the woman’s apartment. It’s alleged that he then forced the woman to drink the alcohol, which he had brought with him.
She also accused Mr Mahara of trying to rape her and physically assaulting her after she tried to stop him.
Both Mr Mahara and the married woman are said to have known each other and that the politician frequently visited her apartment as a family friend.
However, before handing in his resignation, Krishna Bahadur Mahara denied allegations labelled against him.
In a statement, his press adviser Dilli Malla also condemned the allegations, accusing opponents of trying to damage the Speaker’s reputations through “fabricated” allegations.
Meanwhile, Nepal’s opposition parties have been quick to call for independent investigations over the allegations.
