Kathmandu. The investigation into the Rs 250 million foreign exchange fraud has been affected. The investigation itself has been affected due to the disagreement between the Revenue Investigation Department and the Nepal Police.
The Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office, Teku, had arrested illegal foreign exchange, a truck and a driver from Tokha on the night of Chaitra 40. The Teku police had handed over the illegal foreign exchange and the truck driver, Kusang Lama, to the Revenue Investigation Department. The investigation has been affected as the department failed to cooperate with the Nepal Police during the investigation.
According to department sources, dissatisfaction has increased in the Nepal Police after the department sought the assistance of the Armed Police Force for the investigation. A department source told Singha Durbar, “The police have not provided the department with the expected cooperation after the department refused to even appoint a representative in the investigation that it had seized and submitted. There is clear information that Narayan Poudel, who is said to be the owner of Rs 250 million, has reached India, but he has not been able to arrest him.”
The investigation has revealed that Poudel left his mobile phone and reached India after the money was seized. Now, the Nepal Police should seek the help of the Indian Police to arrest Poudel.
According to the officer assigned to the investigation, it has been revealed that the confiscated money, which was brought by selling gold in India, is going to be taken to China.
The source claims that the department made Narayan Poudel’s name public during the investigation to create pressure on the police after the dispute between the department and the police escalated. It is not customary to make names public during investigations. But the Director General of the department, Chandi Ghimire, has made his name public, saying that pressure has increased on him. By making his name public in this way, the accused gets a chance to escape and destroy evidence.
The department, which has reached the second phase of this investigation, has not been able to enter the third phase. According to the information received by the department, a video of Narayan Poudel loading money into a vehicle has been received. An investigation officer involved in the 250 million rupee investigation said, “The tussle started from the first day the department started the investigation. When we started the investigation in the potential area using the technology of the Armed Police Force, we met only policemen in civilian clothes. The police has a lot of information about this investigation, but we are not able to get it.”
So now the Revenue Investigation Department is under Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. The Home Ministry is under the Nepali Congress, namely Ramesh Lekhak. The lack of coordination between these organizations under two different parties has greatly affected the investigation.
Earlier, the department itself had seized gold in the 60 kg gold smuggling case, but Nepal Police was given the task of investigating organized crime. At that time, it was also easy because the Prime Minister and the Home Minister were from the same party. Even in the 60 kg gold investigation, the police had refused to arrest Dawa Tshering, the main accused in the smuggling. After this, a team of the Armed Police Force arrested Tshering from a hotel in Thamel.
The department’s investigative capacity is deteriorating
The investigative capacity of the Revenue Investigation Department under the Prime Minister’s Office is deteriorating. This organization, which has developed into a powerful body, has become known only as a body that intimidates businessmen. A former Director General said that in recent times, this body has become known as a place for ‘poverty alleviation’ of employees.
The Director General said, “The purpose of this office is very big, but now the problem has increased when the office is developed as a money-making vessel. I don’t blame the employees alone. There is a practice of the Prime Minister’s entourage committing a certain amount to send the Director General. It is clear how the Director General who goes like this works.”
The department does not have its own forensic lab. It does not even have a gold and silver sorting machine. There is no technical equipment. There is no strong information exchange system. There is an obligation to cooperate with other bodies for any information or investigation. There is a practice of changing employees in the department every time the government changes. Lately, well-intentioned employees in the department have started to fear being transferred.
प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस्