Bara, April 23

All nine persons, including Kalaiya Sub-metropolitan City Mayor Rajesh Raya Yadav, detained in connection with the distribution of sub-standard pulses in relief, were released on bail.

According to Bara District Administration Office Spokesperson Om Khadka, the detained were released on bail last night in line with the order of Chief District Officer Rudra Prasad Pandit on condition that they present themselves at the administration on the designated dates.

While Mayor Yadav and Dhanalaxmi Pulse Mill operator Tej Karan Jain each posted Rs 281,000, others paid Rs 60,000 each in bail.

Police had arrested the mayor and eight others, five of whom are also local representatives, accusing them of involvement in the distribution of mouldy pulses procured from a cold storage facility operated by the mayor and his relative.

Acting on complaints about the sub-standard food item distributed as relief, police had sealed the cold storage facility containing the pulses and sent samples to Hetauda for a test.

The lab test at Hetauda-based Food Technology and Quality Control Office had established the poor quality of the pulses and had written to the police about its test results.

Besides the mayor and mill operator, Ward No 1 Chair Hariom Sah Sonar, Ward No 7 Chair Srfullah Ansari, Ward No 11 Chair Sarbanarayan Chaudhary, Ward No 13 Chair Rajan Prasad Kurmi, Ward No 26 Chair Mahesh Sah, Ward No 20 Secretary Khedu Miyan and Yadav Ice and Cold Store staff member Krishna Prasad Yadav were detained over the scam.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on April 23, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.