KATHMANDU, Jan 27: Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation Padma Aryal said that those involved in notorious Lalita Niwas land grab case will be brought to book in a few days.

Organizing a press conference at her ministry on Monday, Minister Aryal said that Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) and the ministry itself have been jointly probing the case meticulously.  

"Although it might take some time to carry out a detailed investigation, there is no doubt those who are involved in this land grab scam will face music," she said.

She claimed that her ministry's efforts to bring truth to the public regarding the much-talked-about land scam turned futile as the court raised a question in the middle of the investigation.

"We had already completed necessary proceedings, however, were forced to step back following the court's inquiry." Speaking further she said, "We have now worked in such a way that no question will be raised over it. This is why it's taking time to complete the investigation and bring truth to the public."

On a different note, Minister Aryal said that the issue of land management has become a daunting challenge for her ministry. She also informed that the government is enforcing the Land Utilization Act in a bid to introduce a newer classification of land and the concept of 'land bank'. 

According to the recent study report prepared by the Government Land Investigation Commission, 446 Bigahs and 43 Ropanis of land have yet to be retrieved by the government. "We have already expedited the process to bring that land back," she informed. 

Talking about the recent developments, she informed that the transaction of 1,333,783 square meters of land has been suspended while land measurement, village block and special measurement has been conducted in 26,176 hectares of land.

Similarly, 108 land revenue offices have already gone digital and the rest of the offices will soon be catering their services through online, according to Aryal. 

 
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