JUMLA, Aug 20: Citing financial irregularities on development activities, locals of Dhachugaun and Kudu village have padlocked the office of Hima rural municipality for the past five days.
There has been a catch: workers have accused government officials for not paying their wages while the government has pointed at incomplete task. As a result, unless the government is to clear the workers' dues, the RM would be shut. They have also accused officials of misusing money from the Karnali employment fund during construction of road and a stadium at Aidakot. Before locking the office, they had submitted a letter to the RM's office asking the local body to show transaction details.
Jumla remains disconnected from province capital
The discussion to reopen the rural municipality's office is yet to be agreed upon as both the chair and vice chairperson are in Kathmandu.
The padlocking has affected daily service seekers like Chitra Bahadur Rawat who had come to pay his land tax. However, the RM's chairperson, Raj Bahadur Shahi said he didn't know about the closure. “We will have to dwell into irregularity during the development works. Locking the office won't help at all," Shahi said.
