ITAHARI, Oct 12: Under direct pressure from the Office of the Prime Minister, eight truckloads of betel nuts seized by the Revenue Investigation Office, Itahari, have been released. The vehicles carrying betel nuts were released two months after the police handed them over to the revenue office.

Morang police arrested them on July 21 and handed over 8 truckloads of betel nuts to the Revenue Investigation Office, Itahari on July 25. The revenue office released the betel nut on September 29. As the Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) could not withstand the pressure from the Prime Minister's Office, the Itahari Office was directed to release the betel nuts.

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba's personal secretary Bhanu Deuba had asked the Revenue Investigation Office, Itahari to release the betel nuts. Sources said the Itahari-based office replied that they needed an order from the DRI. Following which, Director General of DRI was pressured and when he could not withstand it any longer the betel nuts were released.

Tirtharaj Khanal, chief of the Revenue Investigation Office, Itahari informed Republica that the DRI had sent a letter requesting permission to let the stopped trucks go to their destination on September 28. Some national leaders called the Revenue Investigation Office, Itahari, to pressurize for the release of the goods. However, when it was not possible, it was made as if the goods were released based on the letter from the director general of the department which was actually written under pressure from the Prime Minister’s Office.

Khanal, chief of Itahari-based office, claimed that he released the goods according to the department's order without being pressured by the Prime Minister's Office. Instead, he said that he was questioned by some former leaders with interest in the issue of betel nut.

Morang police arrested 219,596 kilograms of betel nuts loaded in 8 trucks that passed the inspection from Biratnagar and Jogbani customs and handed them over to the revenue investigation while they were on their way to India.

After the huge amount of betel nuts was taken under control by the police and handed over to the revenue office, Navin Ghimire, exporter of Manakamana Traders Jhapa, filed a petition at the High Court, Biratnagar, demanding release of the betel nuts on August 11, making the district police a defendant, and the court was preparing to put the case on priority.

But after the court found that it could not give a verdict in favor of the plaintiff Ghimire, the betel trader group reached the Prime Minister's Office, Baluwatar. Deepak Pokharel, chairman of Saurya Airlines, led the team to the Prime Minister's Office.

Due to the fact that the exporter group created an all-round pressure to release the betel nuts at any cost as there was no decision in their favor from the court and the time was also extended, Ghimire finally agreed to withdraw the case from the court and write an application to the revenue office requesting to release the betel nuts.

 
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