Minister for Communications and Information Technology Jagdish Kharel resigned from his post on Sunday, citing his decision to contest the upcoming House of Representatives election.

Kharel announced his resignation during a special press conference in the evening. Prime Minister Sushila Karki has accepted his resignation, officials said.

Kharel is reportedly set to contest the election from Lalitpur-2 on the ticket of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP).

With candidate nominations scheduled for January 20, he said he stepped down on Sunday to comply with legal provisions.

His resignation comes days after Minister for Youth and Sports Bablu Gupta also stepped down to contest the elections from the same party.

Kharel was appointed communications minister on September 21.