CIAA files charges against former NTA Chairs and others over MDMS procurement irregularities

KATHMANDU: The Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has taken legal action against twenty individuals, including two former chairpersons of the Nepal Telecommunication Authority, Digambar Jha and Purushottam Prasad Khanal.

This action follows the discovery of irregularities in the procurement process for the mobile management system's consulting service.

The anti-graft constitutional body has lodged a case against them at the special court, seeking to address the discrepancies identified.

A claim amounting to Rs 919.8 million has been filed against former chairs Jha and Khanal, along with several other officials, including senior director Anandraj Khanal, deputy director Meen Prasad Aryal, and assistant director Vinod Chandra Shrestha, among others.

Additionally, the CIAA has requested the recovery of an additional Rs 232 million 59 thousand based on the US dollar exchange rate.

Similar claims have been made against employees of Newmera Eden BHD Malaysia and Kabindra Raj Malla, Director of Namaste Global Common PTE Singapore.

The procurement process for the mobile management system was found to be conducted with malicious intent and lacked proper confirmation.

The Commission uncovered that the work was executed without a cost estimate, and the bid was accepted despite significantly inflated operational costs.

Narahari Ghimire, spokesperson for the Commission, stated that legal proceedings have been initiated against the accused, signaling a firm stance against corruption in such matters.