Kathmandu, June 8: The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed a corruption case at the Special Court against 18 individuals, including former Managing Director of Nepal Telecom, Sunil Paudel, and current Managing Director Sangita Pahadi.
According to CIAA spokesperson Rajendra Kumar Paudel, the case involves alleged financial irregularities in the procurement and billing systems related to Nepal Telecom’s GSM mobile, fiber internet, leased line, wireline, and wireless services.
The anti-corruption watchdog has accused the officials of colluding to misuse public funds through illegal sales and purchases in the billing system. The commission alleges that the procurement process was tainted by bad faith and led to misappropriation of government property.
A compensation claim totaling Rs 334.8 million has been filed against key officials, including Sunil Paudel, Sangita Pahadi, then-Chief Technical Officer Pratibha Shrestha, and Financial Officer Rajendra Shrestha.
Others named in the case include former Chief Operating Officer Jhabindra Lal Upadhyay, former Director Binita Shrestha, Acting Director Amul Pradhan, Manager Devendra Khatiwada, Deputy Manager Rajiv Kumar KC, and several other employees.
Additionally, the CIAA has also filed claims against three Chinese companies that supplied billing equipment, along with their local representatives, demanding the same amount in damages.
The commission claims the accused parties entered into a five-year contract for an integrated billing system with the intention of causing harm to the public enterprise through collusion. The CIAA has sought legal action in line with the financial damage allegedly caused.
