Biratnagar: In the cities of Biratnagar and Jhapa, the glittering casinos run inside five-star hotels are no longer seen as places of entertainment or tourism. Instead, they have earned a notorious reputation as dens of social vice, gang violence and everyday brawls.
Locals and observers say these casinos enjoy blanket protection from workers and leaders of major political parties, turning them into battlegrounds for rival groups. Remarkably, local police records show almost no arrests or legal action against anyone involved in the frequent fights and disturbances.
Residents of Biratnagar insist the casinos have become less about gambling or leisure and more about political influence and illegal money transactions. From Biratnagar to Kakadbhitta on the Indian border, casino operators are widely accused of functioning above the law, shielded by political connections and cash.
Current regulations (Casino Operation Directives 2025) clearly prohibit casinos within five kilometres of any international border. Yet casinos in Biratnagar, Birtamod and Kakadbhitta openly flout the rule. Some, including Happy Hour and SS Long Mini Casino in Kakadbhitta, operate barely 500 metres from the border.
In Biratnagar alone, major casinos include Champion Zone inside Big Hotel and Smart Casino inside Hotel Ratna. Jhapa has four more – two large and two small – while Birtamod and Kakadbhitta host prominent names such as Seven Horse Casino (inside The Kingsbury Hotel) and Casino Vegas (inside Hotel Mechi Crown).
Just a few months ago, in the first week of the Nepali month of Chait, a typical scene unfolded inside Hotel Ratna’s casino in the provincial capital Biratnagar. Under flashing neon lights, gamblers were lost in their games when the atmosphere suddenly turned into a battlefield. A violent clash broke out between groups led by controversial businessman Abhishek Giri and Kiran Lama, a district committee member of the CPN-UML party. By the time police arrived, both sides had fled.
Although Nepali citizens are legally barred from entering casinos (the law allows only foreign tourists), the ban is openly ignored. Locals say the main customers in every casino in the region are Nepalis, and police turn a blind eye because many of the trouble-makers are high-profile figures with strong political backing.
Repeated incidents of violence, extortion and open law-breaking continue with no visible action from authorities. Residents openly allege that senior police officials and police officers receive regular payments from casino operators in exchange for protection and “pretend” inspections.
The human cost is already visible. Local businessmen who get hooked on gambling have drowned in debt, lost their businesses and, in several cases, taken their own lives. Families have been torn apart. “These casinos don’t bring money – they bring destruction,” said one shopkeeper near Hotel Ratna.
Even a senior employee of one casino admitted on condition of anonymity: “Operators pay monthly amounts to security agencies. In return, police only stage dramas of inspection. Young locals walk in freely, and political protection is the biggest proof of how things really work.”
The personalities involved in casino-related violence are often the same names that appear in politics and crime. Abhishek Giri, previously jailed for kidnapping and illegal confinement, now runs a so-called charitable foundation while enjoying protection from the Nepali Congress party. Kiran Lama faces accusations of loan-shark lending and shady land deals while holding a senior position in the UML.
From tourism officials to armed border police, no agency has taken visible action. The regulatory body itself admits it carries out no real monitoring at the local level. As one frustrated businessman in Kakadbhitta put it: “We need permission even to open a small tea shop, but they run full-scale gambling houses in prohibited zones and nobody says a word.”
In eastern Nepal, luxury casinos have quietly transformed into a networked empire where political muscle, illegal money and violence reign – and ordinary citizens and the rule of law are the biggest losers. Official police statements continue to claim they are “working strictly within the law. Few locals believe them.
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