SC issues show cause notice on writ filed against NRB governor

KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 29:  The Supreme Court (SC) has issued a show cause notice on a writ petition filed against Nepal Rastra Bank Governor Mahaprasad Adhikari over his academic qualifications.

The single bench of SC Justice Sushmalata Mathema today directed the government to furnish the reason behind appointing Adhikari to the post of governor.

A writ was filed yesterday in the apex court arguing that Adhikari was appointed as the governor without the minimum educational qualification required for such an appointment.

The government made Adhikari the governor of the central bank on April 6, 2020. Section 20 of the Nepal Rastra Bank Act states that the governor should have a master’s degree in economics, banking, finance, commerce, management, public administration, statistics, mathematics or law and experience in the same field.

In the writ petition filed by advocates Deepakraj Joshi, Pratap Singh Thakurathi, Damodar Timilsana and Chudamani Bhandari, it has been claimed that Adhikari has obtained the equivalence of a master’s degree from Tribhuvan University but the law stipulates that he must have passed the master’s level and hence is not qualified based on equivalence