KATHMANDU - Nepal's Supreme Court ruled on Friday (Jan 27) that deputy prime minister Rabi Lamichhane had stood for election with invalid citizenship papers, annulling his status as a lawmaker and effectively removing him from office.

Lamichhane became deputy prime minister for home affairs - heading the ministry that oversees identity cards - in a seven-party alliance that took power last month.

In its ruling on Friday, a five-member constitutional bench of the top court said the 48-year-old had contested November elections on an invalid citizenship certificate after abandoning his US citizenship.

"He loses his ministerial position and there will be a by-election in his constituency," Lamichhane’s lawyer Sunil Pokhrel told Reuters.

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The departure of the minister was unlikely to affect the future of the ruling alliance, political analyst Krishna Khanal said.

Lamichhane, who hosted a popular television show before entering politics, could not be immediately reached for comment.

Pokhrel said Lamichhane will now seek to get a regular citizenship card and contest the by-election from the same constituency in south Nepal.

Source: Reuters