KATHMANDU: The Special Court has ordered former Secretary Sushil Ghimire to provide a bail of Rs 150,000 in connection with the Pokhara International Airport construction case, which involves allegations of inflating project costs and causing financial loss to the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN).
The order was issued on Tuesday by the joint bench of the Special Court, Kathmandu, Bench No. 2, comprising Narayan Prasad Poudel, Umesh Koirala, and Bidur Koirala.
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) had filed charges under the Corruption Prevention Act, 2002, accusing Ghimire of causing a loss of USD 74,343,450 to CAAN. According to the allegations, Ghimire, who was then Secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, colluded with other defendants to increase the approved project cost from USD 169,697,000 to USD 244,040,450, resulting in significant financial damage to the authority.
Ghimire has denied the allegations in his statements to the investigation and the court. The court, after reviewing the attached documents, decisions of the Council of Ministers and CAAN, and considering the official responsibilities of the defendant, ordered his release on bail under Section 7 of the Special Court Act, 2002, for the purpose of further trial proceedings.
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