The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed an appeal in the Supreme Court regarding a corruption case involving the printing of excise duty stickers.
The Special Court had acquitted former chief secretary Baikuntha Aryal in the case. Dissatisfied with this verdict, the CIAA filed an appeal in the Supreme Court on Sunday, according to the court’s assistant spokesperson Ganesh Bahadur Adhikari.
On June 23, 2024, the CIAA had filed a case in the Special Court against 12 individuals, claiming Rs 386.72 million in damages.
Aryal, who was the secretary at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology at the time, was also charged with corruption in the printing of excise duty stickers.
The other defendants in the case included Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Finance Ritesh Kumar Shakya, Deputy Director General of the Department of Customs Tanka Prasad Pandey, then-director of the Inland Revenue Department Ganesh Bikram Shahi, Section Officer Rabindra Paudel, then-director of the National Information Technology Center Safal Shrestha, then-executive director of the Security Printing Center Bikal Paudel, accounts officer Bishnu Prasad Gautam, section officer at the Security Printing Center Hari Ballabh Ghimire, procurement consultant Shakti Prasad Shrestha, Print Cell Private Limited and its director Keshav Sharma.
The Special Court delivered its verdict in the case on November 28, 2024. Bikal Paudel and Safal Shrestha were sentenced to 8 years in prison, fined Rs 34.22 million, and ordered to pay an equivalent amount in damages.
The other defendants—Baikuntha Aryal, Ritesh Kumar Shakya, Tanka Prasad Pandey, Ganesh Bikram Shahi, Rabindra Prasad Paudel, Hari Ballabh Ghimire, Bishnu Prasad Gautam, Shakti Prasad Shrestha, Printcell, and its director Keshav Sharma—were acquitted.
