Kathmandu, Nov, 3: The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed a corruption case against 97 individuals, including former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, at the Special Court over the alleged illegal transfer and sale of government land granted to Rizal Canning and Company Pvt. Ltd. under a land ceiling exemption.
The anti-graft body filed the charge sheet on Tuesday, accusing the defendants of facilitating the unlawful transfer and sale of land originally granted to the company for operating a fruit-processing industry.
According to the CIAA, the then Ministry of Land Reform had published a notice in the Nepal Gazette on May 19, 1975, allowing Rizal Canning and Company to retain land exceeding the legal ceiling in Sunsari and Morang districts for as long as it continued operating the fruit industry.
However, investigators found that the company transferred 10 bighas, 17 katthas and 10 dhurs of land to Rizal Tashi Industries Pvt. Ltd. on June 16, 1984, in violation of the conditions attached to the exemption.
On April 5, 1992, the government decided to confiscate all land registered in the company’s name after determining that it had failed to comply with the stipulated conditions. The land was subsequently placed under a freeze.
Despite reports indicating that the land had been used for private purposes and left abandoned, the CIAA alleges that officials colluded to facilitate its release for the purpose of selling it. On August 28, 2006, the Land Reform Office in Morang released plots numbered 48 and 71 in the former Ward No. 3 of Biratnagar.
The commission has determined the amount of alleged financial loss at Rs 734,956,000 (Rs 73.49 crore). It has sought recovery of the amount, along with imprisonment and fines under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Those named in the charge sheet include former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, former minister and coordinator of the Cabinet’s Social Committee Dr. Minendra Prasad Rijal, and several former government officials from various ministries, the Department of Land Reform and Management, the Land Revenue Office in Biratnagar, and agricultural agencies.
The CIAA has also sought additional punishment under Section 24 of the Prevention of Corruption Act against former Director General of the Department of Land Reform and Management, Rajendra Prasad Laudari.
The commission has further sought additional penalties against some defendants over allegations of submitting false information and reports.
