Kathmandu- The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed a corruption case against former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and 92 other individuals over illegal land deals involving Patanjali Ayurved in Kavrepalanchok.

Many are wondering what this case is about. To know this, you have to go back to 2010, when Nepal-led cabinet gave permission to Patanjali to buy 815 ropanis of land by granting an exemption to the land ceiling law, which limits how much land one can own.

This kind of exemption is meant only for productive businesses and industries — and such land is not allowed to be sold, as per the Land Act, 2021 (1964).

But soon after getting the land, Patanjali decided to sell it, and the cabinet itself approved the sale, which raised serious legal questions.

After investigation, the CIAA found that this decision misused government property and caused a financial loss.

Because of this, a corruption case has been filed against Nepal, who is also CPN (Unified Socialist) Chair and others. The CIAA has demanded a fine of about Rs 185.8 million from Madhav Kumar Nepal.

His position as a Member of Parliament has been suspended automatically due to the case.

He was suspended from his position as an MP in accordance with Section 33 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 2059, which provides that if a public servant is charged with a corruption case, he will be automatically suspended until the case is resolved.

Nepal was elected as MP from Rautahat-1 in 2022.

This is the first time in Nepal’s history that a former Prime Minister is facing a corruption case. Also, the cabinet decision has been legally challenged as corrupt.

In total, 93 people are being held responsible for misusing their positions to allow the illegal buying and selling of land, which should have remained under government protection.