Kathmandu. Director General of the Department of Revenue Research Chandi Ghimire is set to leave the country after setting a record of being the weakest director general in history. Just two months before his retirement, he was about to leave the department.
Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli had appointed Ghimire as the Director General of the Department of Revenue Investigation on August 27, 2017. Ghimire, who has worked in revenue administration for a long time, had predicted that the capacity of the department would be increased and revenue leakage would be reduced.
However, the department has to be abolished due to the working style of the same Director General Ghimire. A meeting of the Council of Ministers held on May 29, 2018 decided to repeal the Revenue Leakage (Investigation and Control) Act, 2052 BS. At the same time, the department established as a division of the Ministry of Finance in 2034 BS has been abolished. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s Economic and Development Advisor Yubaraj Khatiwada had adopted the policy of giving responsibility on the basis of cadre base experience.
Chandi Ghimire was appointed director general of the Department of Revenue Investigation. A lot of work had to be done to improve the department that had been shaky in the past. Ghimire, who was given the responsibility in August 2081, sent a message saying that the traders/businessmen would be allowed to celebrate Dashain Tihar comfortably. Director General Ghimire did not want to put big tax evasion after the Dashain Tihar was over. Instead, he urged him to help in his tenure accordingly as he was about to retire soon.
He was accused of demanding bribe in the name of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. CPN(UML) lawmaker Amrita Devi Agrahari alleged in parliament that she had to pay a bribe of Rs 3 million to the Department of Revenue Investigation to release 20 quintals of tur.
Similarly, Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Chairman Rajendra Lingden also raised questions in the parliament over the use of prime minister Oli’s name. However, no investigation could be carried out on director general Ghimire. Chandi Ghimire had the opportunity to collect more than Rs 15 billion in taxes by investigating the revenue evasion in electric vehicles. But he stopped the investigation by secretly meeting with businessmen. Although he has stopped the investigation, the Office of the Auditor General has written arrears of Rs 3.72 billion in the name of the Customs Department in the fiscal year 2080/81 alone, citing revenue evasion in electric vehicles.
A team deputed by the Department of Revenue Investigation had raided the central office of Cymex Inc. which sells ‘Build Your Dream’ (BYD) brand electric vehicles in Nepal. The team seized important documents of tax evasion from the company. Even after 11 months of the raid, the department has not initiated any investigation. Neither the department has decided that there was no caffeine in the company nor has the department initiated an investigation.
What was to be done to save the department?
The Department of Revenue Research itself is a powerful and strong institution to prevent revenue leakage. But with the change of prime minister in this organization, the director general and employees started becoming director general by openly putting conditions. The department, which once refused to transfer employees, has been struggling to transfer the department lately.
In order to strengthen this department, first of all, the information mechanism and technical aspects of the department had to be strengthened. The department does not yet have its own forensic lab. There is no machine to check metals including gold. There is no intelligence that can investigate digital crime.
Even the director general and the employees started using a little bit of information as bargaining. Not only the department but also the offices under the department became controversial. Former Director General Dirgha Raj Mainali had used vehicle consignment tracking system (VCTS) to prevent revenue leakage. But lately, the department started misusing the same technology. Ghimire, the current director general, could not take any initiative to save the department.
Such is the history of the department
Before the establishment of the Department of Revenue Research, the revenue leakage was controlled. The Revenue Research Division was established at the Ministry of Finance in 2034 BS. Later, the Department of Revenue Research under the Ministry of Finance was established as a specialized body to control revenue leakage. It happened in 2050 BS. The Department, which was initially empowered to investigate and prosecute tax revenue leakage, has also got the jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute non-tax revenue leakage since 2065/66 BS.
In addition, the Government of Nepal has appointed the Director General of the Department or the officers under this Department or under him as the Investigating Officers to investigate and investigate the foreign exchange related offences.
According to the Revenue Leakage (Investigation and Control) Act, 2052 and the Revenue Leakage (Investigation and Control) Rules, 2070 and the Foreign Exchange (Regulation) Act, 2019 and The Foreign Exchange (Regulation) Rules, 2020, this department has been entrusted with the jurisdiction to investigate, investigate and prosecute the offences related to revenue leakage and foreign exchange embezzlement.
The Department has been active under the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers as per the decision of the Government of Nepal (Council of Ministers) dated March 15, 2019. The department is currently located at Harihar Bhawan, Lalitpur. There are four offices (Itahari, Pathlaiya, Wutwal and Kohalpur).
14 Acts repealed
The government had formed a committee headed by three secretaries to study the report submitted by the High Level Economic Reform Commission. Revenue Secretary Dinesh Ghimire, Commerce Secretary Gobinda Bahadur Karki and Secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office Chunamani Poudel were part of the committee.
The cabinet has approved the proposal of three secretaries. There is a cabinet meeting. It will take two years for this. Along with this act, the government has proposed to repeal 14 acts.
It has been decided to repeal the Income Ticket Fee Act, 2018, The Black Market and Some Other Social Crimes and Punishment Act, 2032, the Private Forest Forest Nationalization Act, 2013, the Administrative Procedure (Regulation) Act, 2013, the Compensation Act, 2018. Similarly, the Birta Abolition Act, 2016, the Birtawal Act, 2015, the Revenue Leakage (Investigation and Control) Act, 2052, and the Prohibition of Foreign Investment Act, 2021 have also been repealed.
Similarly, the Nepal Agency Act, 2014, the Provincial Development Plans (Implementation) Act, 2013, the Social Behavior Improvement Act, 2033, the Increase in Circulation of Nepali Currency Act, 2014 and the Institutions of Financial Intermediaries Act, 2055 have been repealed.
These are the director generals in the department so far
So far, 28 directors general have been appointed in the department. Lokman Singh Karki was the first director general of the department. He was the Director General from 2050/05/25 to 2051/06/16. Tirtha Raj Sharma Gyawali has worked from 2050/05/25 to 2051/06/16. Nutan Raj Shrestha worked from 2052/06/11 to 2053/03/11. Tikadatta Niraula worked from 2053/03/10 to 2054/03/02. Tirtha Raj Sharma Gyawali worked again from 2054/03/03 to 2058/05/25.
Deep Vasnyat worked from 2058/05/28 to 2061/04/26. Madhav Prasad Dhakal worked from 2061/04/28 to 2062/08/12. Keshav Prasad Bhattarai worked from 2062/12/28 to 2064/04/28. Atmaram Pandey worked from 2064/04/28 to 2065/06/13. Tankamani Sharma worked from 2065/06/15 to 2066/06/31. Mahesh Prasad Dahal worked from 2066/07/01 to 2067/12/13.
Shanta Bahadur Shrestha worked from 2067/12/13 to 2069/01/10. Born, Jay Regmi worked from 2069-01-13 to 2069-12-28. Khum Raj Punjali worked from 2069/12/29 to 2071/04/29. Bal Krishna Ghimi worked from 2071/05/31 to 2072/05/30. Ram Sharan Chimoria worked from 2072/05/30 to 2072/10/14. Nirmal Hari Adhikari worked from 2072/10/08 to 2073/11/08. Ram Krishna Subedi worked from 2073/11/12 to 2074/04/25. Bhupal Baral worked from 2074/05/01 to 2075/01/28.
Dirgha Raj Mainali worked from 2075/02/07 to 2077/11/18. Ram Prasad Archaye 2077. 11. 19 to 2078. 06. He worked for 17 years. Prakash Poudel. 06. 18 to 2079. 02. He worked for 31 years.
Jhalakram Adhikari 2079. 03. From 01 to 2079. 07. He worked for 16 years. Madan Dahal 2079. 07. 16 to 2079. 10. He worked for 22 years. Narayan Sapkota. 10. 23 to 2080. 03. He worked for 13 years. Navraj Dhungana 2080. 03. 13 to 2081. 01. He worked for 24 years. Chakra Bahadur Budha 2081. 01. 26 to 2081. 05. He worked till 7. Chandi Prasad Ghimire has been the Director General since September 2018. ।
Director General Chandi Ghimire signs agreement with BYD two months before retirement
‘Rs 3 million bribe to Revenue Investigation Department to release 20 quintals of mustard’
प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस्