Kathmandu: In one of the largest corruption cases in Nepal’s history, the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has charged 55 individuals, including five former ministers, ten former secretaries and the Chinese contractor with embezzling over Rs 8.36 billion (around US$ 62 million) during the construction of Pokhara Regional International Airport.
The case, filed at the Special Court, names the China CAMC Engineering Co. Ltd as a corporate defendant alongside high-profile political and bureaucratic figures. Among the former ministers are the late Post Bahadur Bogati (represented by his wife Rammaya Bogati), Ram Sharan Mahat, Deepak Amatya, Ram Kumar Shrestha and Bhim Acharya.
Ten former secretaries, including Supreme Court ex-registrar Ram Krishna Timalsena who once headed a government task force on the project, have also been implicated. Suspended Civil Aviation Authority director-general Pradip Adhikari and former director Murari Bhandari, already facing charges in a separate helicopter-pad scandal, are among the accused.
The CIAA claims the defendants inflated costs, approved irregular payments and caused massive financial loss to the state coffers in the Chinese-funded airport project that was completed in 2023.
The Special Court will now decide whether to register the case and begin trial proceedings.
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