Dr Bairagi quits as NSA

Kathamndu, 31 July: Dr. Shankar Das Bairagi has resigned as the National Security Advisor (NSA) to the Prime Minister.

Bairagi, a former Chief Secretary, has been a carrier diplomat spending altogether 35 years in the foreign service.

He was promoted as the Chief Secretary on completion of this tenure as the foreign secretary. He was then appointed as the first NSA in the country.

The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed Bairagi’s resignation stating that ‘he had resigned on personal grounds’.

But his resignation comes in the wake of speculation that he had been approached by top government leaders to go as ambassador preferably to India or any other major countries. It is also believed that- it was on this assurance that Bairagi seems to have resigned on 24 July preparing himself for a new diplomatic assignment.

Dr Bairagi refused to talk about circumstances leading to his resignation but said ‘I am no more the NSA’.

Dr Shankar Sharma who had been recalled along with 10 other ambassadors by the Prachanda led government on insistence from current Prime Minister K P Oli, has been reappointed as ambassador in Delhi.

Lok Darsan Regmi who was then nominated as successor to Sharma has been nominated as the ambassador for the United States of America.

Chandra Ghimire, earlier nominated for USA, has now been tipped for the United Kingdom.

Dr Shail Rupakheti, a medical practitioner, has been nominated for Germany.