World
Updated : Aug 30, 2014, 12:34 PM IST
The executive board at the International Monetary Fund has resorted their faith in the leadership abilities of Christine Lagarde, its chief, in the midst of criminal investigation she is facing in France tied to a political corruption probe, BBC News reported.
The executive board said in a statement, "It would not be appropriate to comment on a case that has been and is currently before the French judiciary. However, the executive board has been briefed on recent developments related to this matter, and continues to express its confidence in the managing director's ability to effectively carry out her duties."
Christine Lagarde has been questioned about her role in awarding compensation to businessman Bernard Tapie in 2008 when she was the finance minister of France.
Lagarde's lawyer, Yves Repiquet, who is launching an appeal, said the legal process should not require Lagarde to return to Paris in the meantime. Reuters had previously reported that he would probably lodge the appeal against the investigation by September 15, and that it would likely take at least a year to exhaust all means of recourse, and a further year to arrive at a trial.
A two-year appeals process would last beyond the end of Lagarde's first five-year IMF term, which ends in July 2016.
The previous head of IMF, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, had also resigned over sexual assault charges which were dropped later.