Nepal's Lower House Speaker faces rape allegation

Nepal's Lower House Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara is facing allegations of sexually assaulting a woman staff working in the Federal Parliament Secretariat.

The victim has alleged that Mahara raped her in her rented flat in Tinkune, Kathmandu on Sunday evening when her husband was not at home.

"My husband and I have known him (Mahara) personally for some time. He had come to my place several times before also when my husband used to be here. At around 8 pm on Sunday, he came to my flat in an inebriated condition when my husband was not at home and assaulted me," the victim said.

A formal complaint is yet to be lodged with the police. The Personal Secretariat of the House Speaker has denied the rape allegations.

"These claims are baseless and deceptive. There is no truth over these claims so it is requested to all not to be driven by the illusion," Dilli Malla, House Speaker Mahara's Press Secretary said in a statement.

He claimed that the accusation against the Speaker is an attempt to defame him and is driven by revenge.

"No posting was available in the Federal Parliament Secretariat's Health Department and medical staffs working in Secretariat along with the accuser were demanding for posting while the talk about their adjustment was underway. But the decision over their adjustment comes under the jurisdiction of Ministry of General Administration and Health Ministry. The disgruntled staff had some reservations with us and blamed us for doing nothing. Driven by the feeling of taking revenge, she made the claims which is entirely false, deceptive and unrestrained," Malla said in the release.

An online news portal had first reported the incident on Monday evening and uploaded videos and photos of the victim in which she was allegedly physically assaulted the previous day.

The online portal also uploaded the photos of broken spectacles purportedly belonging to Mahara and a bottle of alcohol allegedly brought by him.