KATHMANDU, Nov 24: The government on Wednesday transferred top revenue officials looking into fake VAT receipt scam even though they were yet to complete the investigations.
After completing their probe into 405 firms, the investigators were focused on remaining more than 118 firms including 96 largest tax paying firms of the country named in the racket.[break]
Most cases under investigation, which is yet to complete, are pertaining to top corporate houses, and through them, Inland Revenue Department (IRD) was hoping to dig out new facts about the scam. It had estimated to complete the investigations within two months.
However, the government on Wednesday transferred Rajan Khanal, Director General (DG), and Laxman Aryal, Deputy Director General (DDG) of IRD, who together spearheaded the action against fake VAT receipt racketeers, to Monitoring and Evaluation Division in the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and the Department of Customs (DoC) respectively. It has replaced Khanal with Tanka Mani Sharma, DG of DoC, and Aryal with Madhu Marasini, an MoF official.
“New officials might be competent, but given the nature and complexities of the scam, they will definitely take more time to understand the sensitivity of the cases and get in sync with the methodology we were working with,” said an IRD official, indicating that the transfer of top officials will slow the investigation, if not derail it altogether.
“It was a matter of just two months. The government should not have replaced the IRD top brass,” he added.
Finance Secretary Krishna Hari Baskota refused to comment on the transfers. Nonetheless, he stated, “Investigations into the fake VAT receipt scam are almost complete. I do not think the current changes will impact it.”
Newly-appointed IRD DG Tanka Mani Sharma said he is aware of the sensitivity of the cases. “Those found involved in the scam will simply not be able to escape. We will take stern actions against them,” he added.
IRD in December 2010 had traced the fake VAT receipt scam, which is estimated to run into Rs 10 billion (about USD138 million), involving as many as 518 firms, including the ones belonging to big corporate houses of the country. So far, it has completed its probe into 405 firms and slapped taxes and fine to the tune of Rs 3.58 billion against them.
Of the major reshuffle, the government on Wednesday also appointed Rana Bahadur Shrestha, joint secretary at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, as DG of DoC. DG of newly-formed Department of Money Laundering Investigation Khum Raj Punjali has been transferred to Corporation Coordination and Privatization Division at MoF and he has been replaced by Mukti Narayan Paudel, senior official at Public Procurement Monitoring Office.
Among others, DDG of DoC Ananda Dhakal has been appointed as Chief of Large Tax Payers´ Office while DDG of Revenue Investigation Department has been transferred to head TIA Customs.