Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Dr Gunakar Bhatta, who was denied the position of Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) Governor a year ago despite an agreement between then ruling party leaders KP Sharma Oli and Sher Bahadur Deuba, has now been appointed Vice-Chairperson of the National Planning Commission (NPC) by the Rastriya Swatantra Party-led government.
A cabinet meeting held on Monday decided to appoint the former deputy governor of the central bank to the post.
He replaces Dr Prakash Kumar Shrestha, also an NRB cadre, who resigned from the position after the formation of a new government under Balendra Shah.
Bhatta had resigned from his position as NRB Executive Director in April after being assured of his appointment as governor. At the time, then Prime Minister Oli and Nepali Congress (NC) president Deuba had agreed to appoint him to the role.
Accordingly, Bhatta stepped down from his post. However, his path to becoming Governor was blocked when Acting Governor Neelam Dhungana delayed accepting his resignation for a long time. Subsequently, Dr Biswo Nath Poudel was appointed governor.
Bhatta, who hails from Sudurpaschim, had been Deuba’s preferred candidate for the position.
Bhatta holds a PhD from Wayne State University in the United States. He also won a gold medal for securing top results in his MBA from Tribhuvan University. He worked across most departments of the NRB during his more than 25 years of service with the central bank. He also served as an adviser at the Ministry of Finance.
Meanwhile, the cabinet has appointed Kiran Pandit as the Deputy Governor of the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB).
