CIAA’s action against high-profile corruption

The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has often been criticized for focusing on petty corruption while overlooking larger cases. However, data from the past year suggests that public officials involved in major corruption have not been exempt from the constitutional anti-graft body’s scrutiny.

High-ranking officials, including former ministers and sitting chief secretaries, have been caught in CIAA’s investigations, showing that those abusing their positions for corruption are being held accountable, regardless of their status.

The CIAA has filed cases against officials ranging from the Chief Secretary, who holds the highest administrative position in the country, to former chief ministers and ministers. The CIAA has filed cases in the Special Court regarding the wide-body aircraft procurement scandal, Melamchi corruption, Madhesh Province's bicycle procurement, and irregularities in Nepal Telecom's MDMS procurement.

Similarly, the CIAA has investigated and filed cases on major irregularities in provincial governments as well as irregularities at the local units. These cases range from corruption in construction of Bharat Lake in Sarlahi to irregularities in stone and gravel contracts in Godavari. 

In the previous fiscal year, the CIAA filed 201 cases in the Special Court. This includes 58 cases related to gaining illegal profit while loss to the state, 48 cases of bribery, 34 cases of fake educational certificates, 34 cases of damage to public property, 13 cases of revenue leakage, 11 cases of accumulation of illegal assets and three miscellaneous cases.

Here we outline major cases registered by the CIAA in the Special Court in fiscal year 2023/24.

Corruption in excise sticker printing

• Case filed: 23 June 2024
• Accused: Baikuntha Aryal (former Secretary of Communications Ministry and former Chief Secretary), Ritesh Kumar Shakya (former Director General of Inland Revenue Department and current Joint Secretary at Finance Ministry), Bikal Poudel (former Executive Director of Security Printing Center), and 11 others including companies
• Amount: Rs 386,717,640 

Irregularities in Bharat Lake construction  

• Case filed: 12 June 2024
• Accused: Bharat Kumar Thapa (suspended Mayor of Bagmati Municipality, Sarlahi), Lila Kumari Muktan (Deputy Mayor), Bimal Kumar Pokharel (former Chief Administrative Officer), and 3 others. Charged with damaging public property, preparing false reports and documents
• Amount: Rs 302,934,897

Corruption in Godavari Municipality’s stone mining contract

• Case filed: 4 June 2024  
• Accused: Gajendra Maharjan (former Mayor of Godavari Municipality, Lalitpur), Muna Adhikari (former Deputy Mayor), and 7 others including a company
• Charged with revenue leakage
• Amount: Rs 1.04bn
• Status: Acquitted by Special Court, but CIAA has filed an appeal at the Supreme Court

Accumulation of illegal assets

• Case filed: 4 June 2024
• Accused: Bikal Poudel, former Executive Director of Security Printing Center, allegedly received commissions from domestic and foreign supplier companies for materials supplied to Telecom. CIAA claims he deposited funds in United Overseas Bank in Singapore and Bank of America in the United States
• Amount: Rs 630m 

Corruption in software and equipment procurement for security printing press   

• Case filed: 13 May 2024
• Accused: Bikal Poudel (former Executive Director of Security Printing Center), Saphal Shrestha (former Director of National Information Technology Center), four others and a company
• Amount: Rs 407,557,740 

Corruption by furnishing false information 

• Case filed: 22 April 2024
• Accused: Bikala Poudel (suspended former Executive Director of Security Printing Center)
• Case: Poudel allegedly obtained foreign permanent residency in violation of Article 291 of the Constitution, and failed to self-declare this information while holding public office

Corruption through registration of forest land in individual’s names  

• Case filed: 19 May 2024  
• Accused: Mohan Snehi Rasaili (former Chief of Kailali Land Revenue Office), Man Bahadur Chand (former Chief of Kailali Survey Office) and six others
• Case: 15 bighas of land designated as forest in Narayanpur-8, Kailali, were illegally registered in individuals’ names by forging documents

Corruption in tea development corporation

• Case filed: 11 May 2024
• Accused: Sanjay Bilotia (former Senior Accountant at Nepal Tea Development Corporation Limited, Birtamod, Jhapa) and 3 others  
• Case: Misappropriation of funds by inflating electricity bills paid to Nepal Electricity Authority
• Amount: Rs 3,252,368 

Corruption case against suspended Nepal Telecom MD Sunil Poudel

• Case filed: 22 April 2024
• Accused: Sunil Poudel (suspended Managing Director of Nepal Telecom, former Executive Director of National Information Technology Center)
• Amount: Rs 37,546,324.57

Accumulation of illegal assets

• Case filed: 11 April 2024
• Accused: Bharat Kumar Thapa (Mayor of Bagmati Municipality, Sarlahi)
• Amount: 53,353,189.66

Corruption in procurement of wide-body aircraft for NAC

• Case filed: 5 April 2024
• Accused: Jeevan Bahadur Shahi (former Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, current Karnali Province Assembly member), Sugat Ratna Kansakar (former General Manager of Nepal Airlines Corporation), and 30 others
• Case: Irregularities in procurement of two A330-200 aircraft for Nepal Airlines Corporation
• Amount: Rs 1,471,085,482.85 

Corruption in health equipment procurement

• Case filed: 1 April 2024
• Accused: Chandra Dev Mehta (former Director of Health Directorate, Dhankuta), accountant, engineer, and three others, along with Hospitech Enterprise Pvt Ltd
• Case: Irregularities in tender for Covid-19 center equipment at Koshi Hospital, Morang
• Amount: Rs 28,966,050 

Corruption in MDMS procurement

• Case filed: 29 March 2024
• Accused: Digambar Jha (former Chairperson of Nepal Telecommunications Authority), Ananda Raj Khanal (Director/Senior Director), Min Prasad Aryal (Deputy Director/Director), Binod Chandra Shrestha (Assistant Director/Deputy Director), 15 others and 2 companies
• Case: Irregularities in procurement of Mobile Device Management System (MDMS) and consulting services by Nepal Telecommunications Authority
• Amount: Rs 919,830,882 

Corruption in Biratnagar Customs 

• Case filed: 27 March 2024
• Accused: Tara Prasad Sapkota (former Chief Customs Officer, Biratnagar Customs Office), Navakul Sharma (Customs Officer), 2 others and Dev International Pvt Ltd
• Case: Deleting import declaration records from the system to evade revenue
• Amount: Rs 8,455,605 

Registration of government land as private property

• Case filed: 26 Feb 2024
• Accused: Bishnu Kumar Neupane (former Chief Survey Officer, Survey Office, Chandragadhi, Jhapa) and 171 others
• Case: Illegally registering 29 bighas 17 kattha 4 dhur of public land in the names of different individuals 
• Amount: Rs 346,654,849.65

Registration of government land as private property

• Case filed: 26 Feb 2024  
• Accused: Ram Dev Mandal Dhanuk (former Survey Officer, Survey Office, Chandragadhi, Jhapa) and 186 others
• Case: Illegally registering 28 bighas 17 kattha 13 dhur of public land in the names of different individuals through self-declared land registration process
• Amount: Rs 416,219,801.75

Corruption in Melamchi Drinking Water Supply Project

• Case filed: 19 Feb 2024
• Accused: Dr Sanjay Sharma (former Secretary of Water Supply Ministry and former Board Chairman of Melamchi Water Supply Development Committee), Bhim Prasad Upadhyay, Gajendra Kumar Thakur, Executive Director of the committee, and 11 others including consultants and construction companies
• Case: Payment made for work not done, failure to deduct rental charges for equipment used by previous contractor, failure to adjust overpayments in subsequent bills
• Amount: Rs 6.73bn 

Land embezzlement in Tikapur Urban Development Committee  

• Case filed: 7 Feb 2024
• Accused: Netra Prasad Joshi (former Chairman of Tikapur Urban Development Committee, Kailali), Lalit Tamrakar, Dhiraj Regmi and 246 others
• Case: Illegal transfer of 600 kattha of public land to individuals through fake receipts and collusion of committee officials

Making illegal gains by causing loss to state

• Case filed: 2 Nov 2023
• Accused: Baikuntha Adhikari (former Secretary of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry, Lumbini Province) and three others
• Case: Supply of substandard agricultural equipment to farmers through cooperatives under mechanization program
• Amount: Rs 13,160,000 

Misuse of grants provided for snake farming

• Case filed: 4 Oct 2023
• Accused: Bijay Kumar (former Minister of Economic Affairs and Planning, Province 2), Prem Kumar Shrestha (former Secretary), Man Bahadur Khadka (former Mayor of Lalbandi Municipality, Sarlahi), and four others including an organization
• Case: Irregularities in establishment and operation of Anti-venom Production and Research Center Nepal (APRCN) in collaboration with Jhalanath Khanal Health Science Academy
• Amount: Rs 179,833,000 

Irregularities in national payment gateway procurement 

• Case filed: 28 Sept 2023
• Accused: Sanjay Sharma (former Secretary of Science and Technology Ministry and former Chairman of National Information Technology Center), Pranita Upadhyay (former Executive Director of National Information Technology Center), and seven others
• Case: Misuse of government property and funds in procurement of National Payment Gateway system that has remained unused for past six years
• Amount: Rs 232,758,077 

Irregularities in procurement of Jalahari for Pashupatinath Temple 

• Case filed: 27 Sept 2023
• Accused: Pradeep Dhakal (former Member Secretary of Pashupati Area Development Trust), Milan Kumar Thapa (current Member Secretary and former Treasurer) and one other
• Amount: Rs 11,701,781.85 
• Status: Acquitted

Corruption in Triyuga Municipality

• Case filed: 23 Sept 2023
• Accused: Baldev Chaudhary (former Mayor of Triyuga Municipality, Udayapur) and three others  
• Case: Revenue leakage in contracts for extraction and sale of stone, gravel and sand in FY 2021/22
• Amount: Rs 8,135,382.16 

Corruption in Bhimdatta Municipality 

• Case filed: 26 Aug 2023
• Accused: Surendra Bahadur Bista (former Mayor of Bhimdatta Municipality, Kanchanpur), Hari Datta Joshi (former Acting Chief Administrative Officer), eight others and Bhawani Construction Pvt Ltd
• Case: Illegal discounts given on revenue from natural resources (river-based materials) contracts in FY 2019/20
• Amount: Rs 13,497,453 

Corruption in Navarajpur Rural Municipality 

• Case filed: 11 June 2024
• Accused: Bishwa Mohan Prasad Yadav (former Chairperson of Navrajpur Rural Municipality, Siraha), Shobha Kumari Yadav (Deputy Chairperson), Chief Administrative Officer, and 11 others
• Case: Misappropriation of funds allocated for completing unfinished work at Ramjanaki Dalit Basic School in Majhaura from Province 2 government’s MP grant

Corruption in Karjanha Municipality

• Case filed: 28 March 2024
• Accused: Ganga Paswan (former Mayor of Karjanha Municipality, Siraha), Jagadish Mandal (former Acting Chief Administrative Officer), three others and a company
• Case: Irregularities in contract for administrative building construction in FY 2021/22.

Irregularities in Samsi Rural Municipality 

• Case filed: 11 March 2024
• Accused: Shesh Farooq (former Chairperson of Samsi Rural Municipality, Mahottari), Mohibul Ansari (former Acting Chief Administrative Officer), and eight others
• Case: Irregularities in road construction projects in Samsi-6, including improper use of contract engineers for estimation and evaluation

Irregularities in Shahidnagar Municipality

• Case filed: 4 March 2024
• Accused: Uday Kumar Yadav (former Mayor of Shahidnagar Municipality, Dhanusha), Shila Devi Kapar (Deputy Mayor), Shatrughna Yadav (Chief Administrative Officer) and six others
• Case: Procurement of substandard sanitary pads in FY 2020/21 without following public procurement laws

Irregularities in Jaleshwar Municipality

• Case filed: 10 May 2024
• Accused: Suresh Sah Sonar (Mayor of Jaleshwar Municipality, Mahottari), Raushan Khatun (Deputy Mayor), Mitra Lal Dhakal (former Chief Administrative Officer) and nine others
• Case: Substandard work in road construction in Jaleshwar-1