Lama says he was framed
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KATHMANDU, March 14: Police on Sunday arrested lawmaker from the UCPN (Maoist) and controversial ex-minister Lharkyal Lama, after the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) found 14 unused bullets and some shrapnel in his bank locker, in the course of investigations.
Kathmandu District Administration Office has remanded Lama to five days in custody for further investigations. The anti-graft body had opened Lama's locker number 1C/411 at Nepal Investment Bank, Durbar Marg branch in his presence, according to SSP Bikram Singh Thapa, chief of Metropolitan Police Range Office, Kathmandu.
Lama, who had reached the CIAA office in connection with the investigations, was taken to the bank locker at Durbar Marg and then immediately handed over to Metropolitan Police Circle Office, Durbar Marg.
"Following his remand into police custody, we have started enquiries into the source of the bullets and the motive for their possession," SSP Thapa said. A police squad lead by SP Pradhumna Kumar Karki has started investigations into Lama.
During the preliminary investigations, Lama has expressed ignorance about the bullets in the locker and claimed his innocence. "It was a CIAA conspiracy to frame me," Lama told his personal assistant, Dinesh Giri. How can the media and police know there were bullets in the locker before it was opened, Lama argued.
The Election Commission had appointed Lama as a Constituent Assembly (CA) member under the proportional representation (PR) quota for the UCPN (Maoist) on February 8, amidst serious dissatisfaction within the party.
Lama was forced to resign from the post of minister of state for finance in the then Jhala Nath Khanal government within a few months of his appointment, after being charged with holding multiple foreign passports and citizenship certificates.
Lama has been accused in the past of possessing an Indian passport under the name of Khempo Tshering, a Tibetan refugee identity card under the name of Lama Chhime Tshering, and citizenship certificates from various districts in Nepal. He was a member of the first Constituent Assembly from the CPN-UML. Lama is also known for his long association with the Free Tibet Movement.
His arrest has come just a week before Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's China visit, which is to start on March 20.
Meanwhile, police are wondering about the security of bank lockers, that are meant for the safety of valuables and important documents.
A bank locker has a set of two keys; one for the customer and the other kept with the bank. The locker can be opened only if both the keys are used. If proved guilty, Lama will be charged as per the Arms and Ammunition Act.
