CIAA Files Corruption Case Against Former PM Madhav Kumar Nepal in Patanjali Land Scam

Kathmandu – The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed a case against former Prime Minister and CPN (Unified Socialist) Chairman Madhav Kumar Nepal at the Special Court in Kathmandu in connection with the Patanjali land scam.

This marks the first time a case has been filed in court against a former prime minister for corruption. With the registration of the case, Nepal’s parliamentary membership has been automatically suspended. According to Section 33 of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority Act, the position of a public office holder is automatically suspended once a case is filed against them.

Nepal was elected to the House of Representatives from Rautahat-1. The CIAA had taken a statement from Nepal during its investigation into irregularities concerning land acquired by Patanjali Yog Peeth in Kavre with an exemption from land ceiling limits.

Former Prime Minister Nepal had expressed concerns that he was being targeted by political prejudice and that his public image was being tarnished by the statement. In response, the CIAA leadership assured him that “the statement would be taken very secretly and its details would not be leaked anywhere.”

Patanjali Yog Peeth had acquired land with a land ceiling exemption for herbal farming and the construction of an Ayurvedic hospital. The CIAA initiated an investigation after it was discovered that the land, which was obtained with a ceiling exemption by a decision of the then government, was later sold by a decision of the Council of Ministers itself.

The Land Act, 2021, allows the government to grant land ceiling exemptions for productive industries or businesses. However, land acquired under such an exemption cannot be sold. The question arose when the government itself permitted the sale of land that was obtained with a land ceiling exemption.

India’s Patanjali Yog Peeth registered a company in 2007 to operate an Ayurvedic educational institution, a hospital, and a herbal farm in Kavre. When the land within the ceiling limit was insufficient, it requested the government to grant permission to hold land with a land ceiling exemption.