Special Court Convicts Seven Former Parsa Land Revenue Officials for Corruption

In a landmark verdict delivered on Monday, the Special Court convicted seven former officials of the Parsa Land Revenue Office on charges of corruption, in a case filed by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) on November 6, 2023.

The convicted officials include former Land Revenue Officers Harinarayan Mishra, Bhup Bahadur Bogati, Gopal Dhungana, Padam Prasad Aryal, Chandra Bahadur Bhandari, Kiran Prasad Upadhyay, and Computer Officer Kumod Bhandari. The court found them guilty of embezzling revenue collected from land transactions during the fiscal year 2014/15.

Sentencing Details
The court has imposed prison terms and fines on the convicted officials. Specific sentencing for Harinarayan Mishra, Bhup Bahadur Bogati, Gopal Dhungana, Padam Prasad Aryal, and Kumod Bhandari will be determined at a hearing scheduled for June 19. One of the convicted, Kiran Prasad Upadhyay, has passed away, and the court has ordered a compensation of Rs 12,511,190.75 to be recovered from his sons Rajkishore, Gautam, Pashupati, and Murari Upadhyay.

Fines and Penalties
Harinarayan Mishra and Bhup Bahadur Bogati have each been fined Rs 12,511,990.
Gopal Dhungana is required to pay Rs 3,545,950.
Padam Prasad Aryal must pay Rs 1,681,600.
Kumod Bhandari is fined Rs 12,511,190.
Chandra Prasad Bhandari has been sentenced to six months in prison and fined Rs 488,900, double the amount of the misappropriated funds.

Case Details
The CIAA investigation revealed that the officials failed to deposit registration fees and capital gains taxes collected from various deeds into the government treasury. Instead, they colluded to use the same registration number for multiple transactions, thereby pocketing the revenue. Charges against Harinarayan Mishra and Bhup Bahadur Bogati highlighted embezzlements of Rs 20,931,647 and Rs 14,969,145 respectively.

This verdict marks a significant step in the fight against corruption, underscoring the government’s commitment to holding officials accountable for the misuse of public funds.