CPN (Maoist Centre) Vice-chair and former Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara has been brought to Kathmandu for investigation into his alleged involvement in a gold smuggling scam.
Mahara, was arrested Monday morning from Pakadi of Kapilvastu district, and was brought to the Capital from the Bhairahawa airport. He was immediately taken to the Central Investigation Bureau’s (CIB) office in Lazimpat. He was about to flee to India when the police nabbed him.
He had gone outside Kathmandu to evade arrest after the police started searching him.
According to CIB spokesperson Hobindra Bogati, a report on the case against the former Speaker will be prepared and forwarded to the Attorney General’s Office later on Monday.
Mahara will be produced at the court to extend his remand, Bogati said. Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane on Sunday had ordered police to implement a report of the inquiry commission on large-scale gold smuggling that pointed out Mahara’s ‘involvement’ in the case. The commission led by Dilli Raj Acharya, a former High Court chief judge, submitted its report on Thursday accusing the CIB of making deliberate efforts not to investigate Mahara, then director general of the Department of Immigration Jhalak Ram Adhikari, and former Nepal Police chief and Sarbendra Khanal in the gold scam.
After receiving the report, Home Minister Lamichhane submitted it to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” following which the Cabinet on Friday had decided to implement the recommendations of the inquiry commission.
The commission submitted its report after studying the lapses in police investigation into the smuggling of 60kg of gold, which was hidden inside motorcycle brake shoes last year, and 9kg of gold concealed inside electronic cigarettes in December 2022.
The District Attorney’s Office filed a case against Rahul, son of former Speaker Mahara, in October last year for his suspected role in smuggling 9 kg of gold.
The CIB had arrested Rahul on August 30 last year for investigation. As per a government report, it was established that the father-son both had been in regular contact with a Chinese national involved in gold smuggling.
