Raj Bahadur Singh, the son-in-law of former Raja Gyanendra Shah, has entered the cooperative sector when cooperatives are falling into crisis by embezzling common people's savings. After taking charge of Sumeru Cooperative, which has a liability of 11.5 billion, the parliamentary committee has questioned Singh.

Singh's group plans to run a medical college from Sumeru Hospital and expects to have more than 4 billion 'margin' over total liabilities. However, this has happened to cooperatives because they aim to take profit like a company.

The then president of Sumeru, Bharat Maharjan, has fled to Britain with his family, according to the officials, he has taken more than 3 billion from Hundi abroad. Singh, who has already entered as a shareholder in Sumeru Cooperative in Taketa, which pays 11.5 billion, has replaced the old committee and promoted the new committee. According to the agreement between Singh's group and the old committee on May 9, the 23rd annual general meeting was held on June 3. Singh, who does not hold any position in the working committee of the cooperative, has signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) as a shareholder. 

According to the agreement, instead of the working committee of the outgoing president Krishna Prasad Kandel, a new working committee has been formed under the chairmanship of Birendra Maharjan from Singh's group. The committee has Harish Chand as vice-president, Orville Gurung as secretary and Rajan Rai as treasurer. The members are Gokul Bahadur Rokaya, Dhruva Bahadur Shah and Anil Mall. 

signature of Raj Bahadur Singh to take charge of cooperative 

The Cooperative Investigation Special Committee has interrogated the officials of his group including Singh. Why did Singh move forward to take responsibility for the savings and embezzlement made by someone else? The parliamentary special committee has questioned him and the group with this question. "After learning that the new management has signed an agreement to return the money of all savers, they took a statement from five former and current members of the cooperative, including Singh, about the plan," a member of the committee told Kantipur.  During the

statement, Singh said that Birendra Maharjan, who is a member of Sumeru Cooperative, is his school friend, and that he has joined the organization as a shareholder because he proposed to run the co-operative. After looking at the financial statement of the cooperative, it was found that if it is managed properly, the money of the savers can be returned. Then friends asked me to join the organization by taking common shares, I did so," he said in the committee. However, he told the committee that he joined the cooperative because of the professional future.

Singh, who is interested in corporate industry including telecom, why is he now attracted to cooperatives? An official who has looked at the accounts of Sumeru Cooperative says that Singh joined the organization after assessing the assets and potential. After the cooperative was in trouble, the then management of Sumeru issued a white paper with an analysis of the organization's financial condition on 080 Baisakh 18 under the direction of the cooperative division of Wagmati province. 

As mentioned in the white paper, 34 thousand 778 common people have savings of 10 billion 34 million rupees, including the four branch offices of Sumeru Cooperative. However, during the same period, the evaluation of the total assets of the organization has been shown to be 11.49 billion. Similarly, the loan flow is 4 billion 10 million. "In this way, since the total assets are 15.6 billion and the liability is only 11.59 billion, it is estimated that the net profit will be 4.92 billion rupees. Since the margin will be more than 4 billion immediately, Singh has also joined," said one of the directors. 

Sumeru's estimated financial details

Among the companies operating under the Sumeru group, Sumeru Community Hospital Dhapakhel is valued at 2.52 billion, Sumeru City Hospital Pulchok is 1.42 billion, and the land in the horse breeding area in Dhapakhel is valued at 1.25 billion. Similarly, agricultural farm land worth 96 million, Sumeru Mart (Satdobato) 1.16 billion, Sumeru Old Age Home land 340 million, property in the main area of ​​the city 67 million, Sumeru Resort Toudah 280 million and property in the outer districts 2.85 billion. is kept Asian College has been assessed at Rs.25 crore, Shankharapur Academy at Rs.29 crore and other properties at Rs.279 crore. Thus, it is mentioned in the white paper that the total value of companies affiliated to Sumeru is 11.49 billion rupees.

On the one hand, this white paper was prepared by the old working committee. On the other hand, even if the profit is 'margin', it is not acceptable to the manager. Those who do not understand the basic principles of cooperatives have drowned even the common people, those who are trying to come in are also excited that they will make a profit overnight. "There is no credible work," says an officer of the cooperative division.  According to Birendra Maharjan, chairman of the cooperative, after the new working committee came to the organization, the overall asset and liability evaluation work has resumed. The old committee has said that there are about 10 and a half billion liabilities and more than 11 billion assets. However, we are re-evaluating. The report will come within a week or two, he said. 

According to Maharjan, although there are various companies operating under the Sumeru Group, the assets are not in the name of the cooperative but in the name of a certain person. Chairman Maharjan said, "Our first effort will be to return the money of the savers and to return all the assets in the name of such and such person to the name of the cooperative."   Another director says that the main purpose of Singh entering the cooperative is not only looking at the property of "around 4 billion margin". Efforts are being made to convert Sumeru Hospital, which has been operating for a long time, into a medical college. Currently, Sumeru Group colleges offer courses in nursing, pharmacy and public health. After the medical college is established, it is expected to become a profitable hospital," he said. 

In this background, it is stated in the agreement signed by Singh as a shareholder with the old board of directors of the cooperative, 'All the assets in the name of Sumeru Saving and Credit Co-operative Limited and all the assets and liabilities of the mentioned companies within the Sumeru Group, we are under the authority of the representative of the State Cooperative Department of this organization as it is. It is mentioned in the paper that they are ready to run the organization properly by taking the responsibility of the new board of directors at the general meeting and taking responsibility for all the liabilities and assets of the cooperative. "Furthermore, if the organization is unable to return the deposit due to various reasons, we request that they agree to take over the same even in the case of complaints to various agencies and start the process for agreement," the letter said.