KATHMANDU: The private secretariat of Nepali Congress President and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has issued a statement rejecting rumors that a large amount of money was discovered at his Budhanilkantha residence.

On Thursday, Deuba’s personal secretary, Bhanu Deuba, issued a press release expressing serious concern over “fabricated reports” that excessive cash had been found at Deuba’s residence, that burned banknotes were scattered across the premises, and that there was even a hidden “money tunnel.”

The statement clarified that “an underground tank inside the house has been misrepresented in various ways on social media,” emphasizing that it was merely a water tank.

The secretariat also dismissed as false the circulation of edited photos and videos on YouTube and social media, where old footage of burnt banknotes from different times and places had been spliced together to create misleading content aimed at discrediting Deuba.

“I sincerely urge all Nepali parents, brothers, sisters, and members of the party, as well as the public at large, not to be misled by such defamatory misinformation spread with ill intent,” the statement concluded.