Nepal’s anti-graft agency has filed a corruption case against more than 50 individuals, including several former ministers and senior bureaucrats, over alleged irregularities in the construction of Pokhara International Airport.
In a statement on Sunday, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) said it had named former ministers Dr Ram Sharan Mahat, Post Bahadur Bogati, Ram Kumar Shrestha, Bhim Acharya and Dipak Amatya among the defendants. Ten former secretaries have also been included in the case.
The CIAA has claimed losses amounting to 8 billion rupees and has submitted the charge sheet to the Special Court.
A parliamentary sub-committee had earlier concluded that close to 10 billion rupees may have been misused during the airport’s construction, identifying irregularities under 11 different headings.
The Chinese firm involved in the project—China CAMC Engineering Co., which signed the construction contract with Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority in 2014—has also been named as a defendant.
Pradeep Adhikari, the suspended Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority who is already facing a separate corruption case related to a helipad project in Bhaktapur, is among those linked to the new investigation. According to the CIAA, inquiries involving other high-ranking officials are still underway.
