KATHMANDU: A corruption case has been filed against 12 individuals, including the former chairman of Arjunchaupari Rural Municipality, Dirgha Narayan Aryal, by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA). The case was filed in a special court on Tuesday.
The charge sheet presented by the commission accuses Aryal, along with Chief Administrative Officer Puran Gurung and the chair of the consumer committee, of corruption that led to both illegal gains and losses.
The individuals are accused of causing substandard work under government-funded projects, leading to the waste of public resources.
Aryal, who ran as a candidate from the Nepali Congress during the first local elections in 2017 and won by a narrow margin of 78 votes over Mohan KC of the CPN (UML), is facing serious allegations.
A complaint was lodged with the CIAA regarding the construction of a road in the local market area under the rural municipality, funded by the budgets of fiscal years 2018/19 and 2019/20.
The investigation found that the roadwork, part of the ‘Rural Municipality Headquarters Management A’ scheme implemented in the fiscal year 2018/19, was substandard. The slopes at multiple locations collapsed, leading to a loss of Rs 2.705 million in state resources.
In the subsequent fiscal year 2019/20, additional substandard work amounting to Rs 834,320 was discovered under the ‘Lower Bazaar Drain and Slope Construction Scheme’.
The slopes in this scheme also collapsed, further highlighting the mismanagement of public funds.
Following an inquiry, the CIAA filed the charge sheet, accusing the individuals of colluding to carry out substandard work and misappropriate public resources.
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