KATHMANDU, Jan 14: The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has come under scrutiny for allegedly filing cases just for the sake of popularity. The commission is in the limelight for initiating numerous cases without substantial evidence and conducting weak investigations.

CIAA is the main agency that conducts impartial investigation and registers cases if persons holding public office are found to have misused their authority and power. But the anti-graft body’s success is limited to 33 percent when it prosecutes the cases without proper investigation. The CIAA has also been criticized for only convicting low-level employees holding public positions while the high-ranking officials often manage to go scot free. Statistics show that only 33 percent of corruption cases registered by the commission in special courts have been resolved.

Analyzing the cases registered by the CIAA during a span of 10 years, it is evident that the lowest number of corruption offenses were recorded in the year 2022/23. 

Out of the corruption cases registered by the CIAA in the same fiscal year, the Special Court had issued verdicts on a total of 341 cases. However, only 114 of these cases resulted in guilty verdicts. The commission has chosen to pursue appeals in a total of 238 cases.

Based on the charge sheets filed in the Special Court since 2012, there is a discernible decline in convictions. In response, the commission has taken action by filing writ petitions at the Supreme Court, expressing dissatisfaction with cases that were acquitted by the Special Court. This move has only piled up cases at the Supreme Court.

The CIAA has alleged that the Special Court has been acquitting the accused even though there is ample evidence.

On the other hand, the Special Court has maintained that the cases are acquitted when the investigation is weak and the CIAA fails to submit proper evidence. 

Critics argue that the CIAA registers a higher number of cases just to create an impression that it is actively working to curb corruption. The commission has been registering cases related to illegal wealth acquisition, irregularities in decision-making, revenue leakage/embezzlement, fake certificates, bribery/extortion.

When retrospectively examining the past, it becomes evident that there have been fewer convictions in corruption cases registered over the last four years.

Analyzing the cases registered in the past ten years reveals that the rate of conviction by the special courts peaked at 88.24 percent in 2018/19. However, the subsequent years witnessed a decline in both case registration and conviction rates to as low as 33 percent in 2022/23. Notably, the conviction rate is 5 percentage points lower than the preceding year, 2021/22, when the Special Court found the accused guilty in 38.51 percent of cases.

 
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