KATHMANDU, March 4: The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed an appeal in the Supreme Court (SC), challenging both the convictions and acquittals in the Lalita Niwas land grab case.
The CIAA has appealed for harsher punishments for those convicted in the case and retrial of those acquitted by the Special Court.
The appeal challenges the decision against 110 accused and demands the confiscation of land from 65 others. The CIAA argues that the special court's ruling was flawed, as it imposed lenient sentences and cleared some individuals of wrongdoing.
Earlier, publishing the full text of its verdict on the Lalita Niwas land grab case in October, the Special Court argued that a corruption case cannot be lodged against the ministers behind the Cabinet decision. Claiming that the plaintiffs in the case could not substantiate their arguments on why the implementation of the masterplan for construction of the Prime Minister’s residence did not fall under the jurisdiction of the Cabinet, the court granted immunity to the political leaders involved in the Cabinet decision-making process.
The verdict of the Special Court ruled that the policy decisions made by the Cabinet did not fall within the jurisdiction of the CIAA.
Section 4 of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority Act, 2048 provides the CIAA the right to investigate any alleged abuse of authority by any office-bearer in the government.
During 1993 and 2013, a total of 143 ropanis of land belonging to the Lalita Niwas was found transferred in the name of individuals who were not the real tenants. In its investigation, the CIAA has traced involvement of a large number of high profile government officials, politicians and businesspersons involved in the scam.