KATHMANDU: The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has summoned Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah to clarify the expenses incurred during his visit to the Cannes Film Festival in France last year.
The summons follows a complaint lodged with the CIAA, as well as concerns raised by the Office of the Auditor General. The audit questioned the decision to take two members of Shah’s secretariat, Sunil Lamsal and Kumar Byanjankar, as official municipal employees during the trip, which took place in May 15, 2024.
Both aides have already appeared before the CIAA for questioning. Mayor Shah has also been called in but has not yet responded or appeared.
According to the Auditor General’s 2082 B.S. report, more than Rs 2.25 million was spent on the Cannes visit. The amount was paid from Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s funds through multiple vouchers in the names of Shah and his aides. The audit report questions the justification for making repeated payments under different vouchers for the same event and raises concerns about the legality of the expenditure.
The report further states that the trip violated the Local Level Officials’ Foreign Visit Guidelines, 2075 B.S. It highlights that proper nomination procedures were not followed and that most of the spending did not comply with financial rules.
During the trip, Shah had participated in Cannes red carpet and premiere events, met with festival organizers, and visited audiovisual content facilities. A reception was also hosted in his honor at the Cannes Multimedia Library. The mayor returned on May 21, 2024.
Despite growing scrutiny, Shah’s office has not provided any public response. He has remained inactive on social media in recent weeks, amid reports of internal conflict with Deputy Mayor Sunita Dangol, Chief Administrative Officer Saroj Guragain, and several ward chairpersons.
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