KATHMANDU, March 28: Despite Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s directives to conduct a deeper investigation into irregularities in the distribution of driving licenses, the instructions have been disregarded.
In the investigation conducted by the Department of Transport Management (DoTM), it was found that more than 100,000 licenses were distributed irregularly due to financial enticement. After that, the DoTM suggested various agencies conduct further investigation in this case.
However, the director general of the DoTM, Uddhav Rijal, has accepted that PM Dahal’s instructions have not been followed. “PM Dahal gave instructions for further investigation at that time. Accordingly, we also sent four letters to the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), met the officials of the CIB, and requested them, but so far no attention has been shown in the investigation,” said Rijal.
Director General Rijal has also informed Deputy Prime Minister and Physical Infrastructure and Transport Minister Raghubir Mahaseth about this matter. Although Rijal informed Minister Mahaseth about the illegal license distribution process and the details of the staff involved in it, the minister showed little interest in further investigation. “Since there have been no interest in conducting further investigation, concerns have been raised regarding potential involvement of ministry officials in the distribution of illegal licenses,” said a joint secretary of the ministry.
According to Director General Rijal, the DoTM first sent a letter to the CIB on January 28, asking it to conduct an investigation. The follow-up letters were sent on February 6 and 8. After writing to the CIB for the fourth time on February 12, Director General Rijal held discussions with the CIB chief including high-ranking officials of Nepal Police.
CIAA intensifies investigation into fake driving licenses scam
Investigations into the details from August 2015 to August 2023, reveal that only a little over 28,000 licenses were issued from DoTM. It includes 12,000 licenses legally issued during the tenure of 10 previous directors general of the DoTM. Surprisingly, the combined licenses issued by those 10 directors general are fewer than those issued by the incumbent director general, which according to the figures stand at 16,000.
It has been found that over 120,000 counterfeit licenses were distributed, with 28,000 entries recorded during the tenures of former directors general Chandman Shrestha, Rup Narayan Bhattarai, Lavanya Dhakal, Kumar Prasad Ghimire, Gogan Bahadur Hamal, Nawaraj Ghimire, Suresh Raut, Tokraj Pandey, Tulsi Nath Gautam, and Narayan Bhattarai. Furthermore, it was even found that licenses were issued without undergoing trials, constituting a clear criminal offense. Director General Rijal said, "The department has also facilitated the investigation, and we urge for a fair inquiry into these matters."
In the past decade, over 100,000 licenses were unlawfully distributed. Even individuals involved in fatal traffic accidents acquired licenses without undergoing the required trial. Among the 28,000 licenses issued by the DoTM, only the numbers are specified, indicating a lack of proper documentation and oversight. It is estimated that these licenses could have been issued under any circumstance.
The DoTM started an investigation after it was found that 120,000 service users from 35 transport offices in the country had obtained licenses in the last 10 years without taking written tests and trials.
The investigation was conducted under the coordination of Mukesh Regmi, the IT head of the DoTM, after it was found that licenses were issued by tampering with the 'Electronic Driving License System' without fulfilling the legal provisions in the Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act.
The Department of Information Technology (DoIT) has submitted a report to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, pointing out the flaws in the electronic driving license and vehicle registration system of the DoTM.
The security audit team led by the Director General of the Department of Information Technology (DoIT) Prem Sharan Shrestha submitted the report to the Prime Minister saying that the system is flawed. The audit was initiated by the government following the discovery of over 100,000 fake licenses.
The "Technical Security Audit" conducted over two months revealed alarming vulnerabilities, including the potential theft of Nepali citizens' biometric details through system hacking, as disclosed by a reliable source at the Prime Minister's Office. "Most of the reports compiled in three separate volumes contain technical intricacies," added the source.
The Prime Minister's Office made a secretary-level decision, based on the audit findings from the source code, that the existing license issuance system does not serve the best interests of Nepal, its government, or its citizens. Following the revelation of illegal license distribution within the DoTM, a "Technical Security Audit" was initiated, with the DoTM providing access to the source code. Under the leadership of Director General Prem Sharan Shrestha, a security audit team was formed by the DoIT.
The same team took the source code of the DoTM and conducted a security audit. Expressing concerns over the susceptibility of the current system to illegal license issuance, the DoIT has urged the government to adopt an alternative solution. Given that the electronic driving license and vehicle registration system was developed by a company based in Madras, India, the DoIT has recommended exploring alternative systems instead.
As the source code provided by the Madras-based company is outdated, the DoTM has requested a new code. A team, including IT advisor Prakash Rayamajhi, a representative from the DoIT stationed at the Prime Minister's Office, a computer engineer from the Information Technology Section at the DoTM, and Prakash Rayamajhi, conducted a comprehensive "Technical Security Audit" based on the source code provided by the DoTM.
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) is also investigating the illegal issuance of more than 100,000 licenses from August 2015 to September 2023. After the new constitution was promulgated by the Constituent Assembly in the year 2072 BS, the transport offices that conduct the written test and the trial test for the driving licenses have come under the provincial governments.
