KATHMANDU, JULY 18
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority today said it had worked on as many as 24,241 complaints of corruption and financial irregularities in the fiscal 2021-22. Of them, 8,093 complaints were carried over from the previous fiscal 2020-21.
According to a brief report released by the anti-graft body, it managed to settle 17,098 (70.53 per cent) out of 24,241 complaints in the fiscal 2021-22. Similarly, 820 complaints have been sorted out for detailed and comprehensive investigation. It claimed that the settlement rate of complaints was 70.53 per cent in the fiscal 2021-22 compared to 64.23 per cent in the previous fiscal. The sources of complaints registered with the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority were newspapers and electronic media, written applications, email, Facebook, Viber, its website, mobile SMS, telephone, mobile app and postal service, among others.
"We have decided to carry out comprehensive investigation into 820 complaints received in the fiscal 2021-22 compared to 510 in the previous fiscal after classification and preliminary inquiry of all the complaints registered by the anti-graft body," read the report.
The anti-graft body filed 131 chargesheets at the Special Court against 639 persons, including public post holders and their associates.
It said the court had convicted the defendants of 58 (39.19 per cent) cases such as bribery, fake academic credentials, loss or damage of public property, accumulation of disproportionate assets, revenue embezzlement, unauthorised benefits, among others, through 148 judgements.
Of a total of 639 persons sued by the CIAA, three were civil servants of special class, 308 were civil servants and police personnel of various ranks, 172 were intermediaries or associates, one was a former minister and 155 were elected/nominated office-bearers.
In 131 chargesheets filed at the court, the CIAA claimed a principal amount of more than Rs 2.78 billion from 639 defendants. The CIAA conducted 25 sting operations in the fiscal 2021-22, leading to the arrest of 38 persons. Of them, 26 were public post holders. They were held while receiving bribe from service-seekers.
Those arrested with bribe included joint secretaries or equivalent positions, under-secretaries, section officers, non-gazetted first class officers, non-gazetted second class officers, office assistants, police personnel, elected/nominated officials and intermediaries/associates.
The CIAA said that it had adopted preventive, promotional and punitive measures in a bid to curb corruption in the country.
A version of this article appears in the print on July 19, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
