The Special Court has ordered the retrieval of bank records belonging to Sunil Paudel, former executive director of the National Information Technology Center (NITC), from a bank in Singapore.
On Tuesday, a bench of Special Court Judges Sudarshan Dev Bhatta, Hemanta Rawal, and Dilli Ratna Shrestha issued an order to obtain details of Paudel's savings and fixed deposit accounts at United Overseas Bank Limited in Singapore, along with information on the amounts held in those accounts.
The court has directed that the details be retrieved as soon as possible through banking procedures via Nepal Rastra Bank.
"Retrieve and submit, as expeditiously as possible, details of the alleged savings and fixed deposit accounts in the name of Sunil Paudel at United Overseas Bank Limited in Singapore, along with details of the savings amounts held therein, from United Overseas Bank Limited in Singapore through banking procedures via Nepal Rastra Bank, with the assistance and coordination of Singapore's central bank," the court’s order states.
Noting that Nepal has not yet signed an agreement on mutual legal assistance (MLA) with Singapore, the Special Court has also ordered that a prompt response be sought from the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs explaining whether such details can be obtained from the aforementioned bank in Singapore accordingly.
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed a case against Paudel in the Special Court, accusing him of accepting bribes in the procurement of equipment and depositing the bribe money in a bank in Singapore.
