The special court has convicted six people, including the then chairman of the municipality, ward chairman, and employees, in a corruption case.
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A special court has found six people, including the former chairman of Khaptadchanna Rural Municipality, guilty of corruption by making fake plans and paying money.
The special court has convicted six people, including the then chairman, ward chairman and employees of the municipality, in a corruption case.
The then chairman of Khaptadchanna Rural Municipality Barka Bahadur Rokaya, the then chairman of Ward 4 Bhim Bahadur Rokaya, the then Chief Administrative Officer Deepak Kumar Rawal, Engineer Surendra Bahadur Khati, Assistant Sub-Engineer Janak Thapa Magar and Consumers Committee Chairman Shamsher Rokaya have been found guilty of corruption by preparing fake documents in the construction of the Ghatta irrigation canal in Shimla.
The case was presented in the bench of Special Court Judge Dilli Ratna Shrestha on Sunday after a difference of opinion between Judge Tej Narayan Singh and Ram Bahadur Thapa. With Judge Shrestha supporting Singh's guilty opinion, the court has sentenced all those found guilty to six months in prison and a fine of Rs 25,000 each.
Five people, including the village head, were sentenced to the same punishment as per Section 9 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2059 BS and Sub-committee Chairman Shamsher Rokaya was sentenced as an accomplice as per Section 22 of the same act.
During the course of the argument, the defendants claimed that there was no intention of corruption as the documents were prepared ‘by mistake’ and were later corrected. However, the special court has held that the act of entering into an agreement, preparing a monitoring report and cutting a check in a place where there was no plan cannot be called an error.
In the verdict, the court said, ‘It cannot be considered an error to proceed with the agreement, monitoring and payment process in a place where there was no plan through various levels of processes. Such an act involving multiple people appears to be planned.’ Another defendant, Madanraj Joshi, has been acquitted in this case.
They had allocated funds for the construction of the Silka Ghat irrigation canal in the fiscal year 2076/77 BS and completed the work. The Authority has stated that irregularities were found in the fiscal year 2077/78 by taking payment on the basis of fake documents without showing any work done in the previous year. A case was filed against them with the Authority, fixing a fine of Rs. 14 lakh 8 thousand 817.
The Authority had started an investigation into this matter after a news item was published in Kantipur on Asad 28, 2078 under the title of making a fake plan and making payment.
A news item was published in Kantipur about the fact that not only the consumer committee but also fake monitoring reports and work completion reports were made in collusion with people's representatives and village council employees and the payment of the plan was made. After that incident, the village council cancelled the check cut for the payment.
