Nepal’s anti-graft body lodges corruption case against two former ministers over Pokhara land scam

Kathmandu, Oct 8 (PTI) Nepal’s anti-graft body on Wednesday filed corruption cases against seven people, including two former ministers, in connection with the 'Litchi Bagan' land scam in Pokhara.

The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) submitted the chargesheet against former minister for federal affairs and general administration Rajkumar Gupta of the CPN-UML and former minister for land management, cooperatives and poverty alleviation Ranjita Shrestha of the Nagarik Unmukti Party for their alleged involvement in bribery cases.

The case was revealed after an audio recording was leaked in July, allegedly capturing conversations involving the former ministers and middlemen in a bribery deal to manipulate land ownership records of 134 ‘ropanis’ of land at Batulechaur, Pokhara, known as the ‘Litchi Bagan’ plot.

A case has been lodged in the Special Court in Kathmandu, stemming from the investigation into an audio recording in which then-minister Gupta purportedly accepted Nepalese Rs (NPR) 5.3 million from a real estate businessman to facilitate the transfer of Ramchandra Adhikari, who was the head of the Land Revenue Office in Kaski district at the time.

Gupta allegedly negotiated a bribe of NPR 2.5 million to appoint Adhikari as a member of the Land Commission.

The commission has filed the case seeking fines and penalties against Gupta for NPR 7.8 million, Shrestha for NPR 7.8 million and Adhikari for NPR 5.3 million.

In the chargesheet, the CIAA has sought real estate brokers Sujan Kumar Lama for NPR 7.8 million, defendant Khem Pun for NPR 2.5 million, defendant Yama Kumari Gurung for NPR 7.8 million and defendant Tulsiram Budhamagar for NPR 7.8 million, said Rajendra Kumar Kandel, spokesperson of the CIAA. PTI SBP GSP GSP