Home Minister Sudhan Gurung Deletes Social Media Post Defending Personal Wealth Amid Public Backlash

Kathmandu – Home Minister Sudhan Gurung has removed a comment he posted on social media regarding his property disclosure. Following public criticism over the unusually high amount of assets reported by the Prime Minister and various ministers, Gurung had commented that wealth earned before joining the government is not a “sin.” However, he deleted the post after it drew further backlash online.

Questions have been raised regarding the source of assets, particularly gold and jewelry, listed in the property disclosures of the Prime Minister and ministers. In his original post, Home Minister Gurung stated that while being born poor is not a mistake, dying poor is. He wrote on his Instagram story that earning wealth without corruption before entering government is not a sin, whereas committing corruption while in office is. He concluded his post with the hashtag “Be aware.”

According to the details submitted by Gurung, he owns 89 tolas of gold and 6 kilograms of silver. His land holdings are also significant; he reported 221 ropanis of ancestral land in Gorkha registered under his grandfather’s name. Additionally, he noted 30 kattha of land in Bharatpur, Chitwan, under his father’s name, and 19 ropanis and 15 ana of land in Dhankuta under his own name.

His investment portfolio appears equally substantial. He has invested approximately 43 million rupees in shares across various companies and holds more than 6.2 million rupees in savings across three bank accounts. While Gurung cited ancestral inheritance and business as the sources of his wealth, he did not disclose the specific nature of those businesses.