Suspended Chief Secretary Aryal acquitted in corruption case

KATHMANDU, OCTOBER 31: The Special Court has acquitted suspended Chief Secretary Baikuntha Aryal in a corruption case involving the printing of excise duty stickers.

The division bench, led by Special Court Chairperson Justice Tek Narayan Kunwar with Justices Khushi Prasad Tharu and Ritendra Thapa, yesterday dismissed the charges filed by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), which accused Aryal of involvement in the printing process.

The court ruled that the allegations of “malafide intention and collusion” for personal gain, which supposedly led to financial losses for the government, lacked supporting evidence. The judgment stated that Aryal’s actions as Secretary at the Ministry of Information and Communications were without any intent to defraud and made in the absence of relevant precedents or bylaws.

It was clarified that budget allocation for the National Security Printing Centre followed the Line Ministry Budgetary System (LMBS) and that Aryal's actions, along with others', were in good faith to support a nationally significant project.

The acquittal extended to consultant Shakti Shrestha, account officer Bishnu Gautam, section officer Hari Ballav Ghimire, Prince Cell Pvt, and its director Keshav Sharma. However, the court found the Security Printing Centre’s Executive Director Bikal Paudel and Director Safal Shrestha guilty, with sentencing yet to be determined.

The CIAA had charged 11 individuals and one company, seeking recovery of Rs 386 million. The case had been under continuous hearing for five days.