Kulman Ghising, who was handling the responsibilities of three ministries, has resigned from his ministerial position.
He announced his resignation during a press conference organized at the Ministry of Energy at 9 p.m. on Wednesday.
He has already submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Sushila Karki.
Ghising was overseeing the Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure, and Ministry of Urban Development.
For some time, Ghising had been advancing the Ujyalo Nepal Party under his own patronage, but on December 29, he signed a unification agreement with the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP). Following the agreement, he has become the top-ranked vice-president of the RSP.
The RSP has included 14 individuals from his party in its list of proportional representation candidates.
Pressure had been mounting on Ghising to leave the government after becoming RSP vice-president. Noting that his presence in a non-partisan government was sending the message that the government belonged to one party, PM Karki had also requested him to step down.
However, Ghising said during an event on January 6 that he was not a member of any party.
His statement denying membership of any party—despite having already signed an agreement to become RSP vice-president—drew criticism.
Ghising is preparing to contest from Kathmandu Constituency No. 3 in the election scheduled for March 5.
He was appointed minister on September 15 in the interim government led by former chief justice Sushila Karki, formed after the Gen Z movement of September 8-9.
