KATHMANDU, Feb 6: The Supreme Court has upheld a Special Court order to keep Pradeep Adhikari, suspended Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN), in judicial custody pending trial.
A division bench of Justice Hari Prasad Phuyal and Shanti Singh Thapa endorsed the earlier decision after Adhikari filed a petition challenging the detention order. The court refused to release him on bail and directed that legal proceedings continue in accordance with the law.
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With the ruling, Adhikari will remain in custody. The Special Court had on December 7 ordered his remand for trial until final verdict.
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) had filed a corruption case on December 3 against Adhikari and four others. They are accused of embezzling Rs 135.746 million during the construction of a heliport in Nalinchok, Bhaktapur.
Others charged in the case are former director of the CAAN Murari Bhandari, manager of CAAN Nal Bikram Thapa, deputy director and engineer Sambridhi Shrestha along with two persons from ‘Abhiyantra Consulting Pvt Ltd’ – Gurudatta Adhikari and Bijay Thapa. The anti-graft body has demanded recovering Rs 135 million from each of the government employees and the two consultants.
The CIAA had launched an investigation following complaints that CAAN misused its 32-ropani plot in Nalinchowk while building the heliport, raising questions about the project’s necessity and procedural compliance. The complaints also alleged that the heliport was constructed without carrying out a mandatory environmental impact assessment.
