Off the Record 133: In custody, in the hospital

Issue 133 • 22 March 2024

Mar 22, 2024

It’s March 22, 2024, and you’re reading Off the Record.

I’m Pranaya Rana and in this newsletter, we’ll stop, take a deep breath, and dive into one singular issue that defined the past week.

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Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening from rainy Kathmandu. The winter seems to be truly over now with the days and nights both getting warmer. It’s been a little slow this week but there’s still a lot to say.

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Krishna Bahadur Mahara arrested, again

Krishna Bahadur Mahara, once the closest of confidants of Maoist head honcho Pushpa Kamal Dahal, is in the dock once again, this time for gold smuggling. Mahara was among the prime movers in the Maoist party at one time but scandal after scandal have pushed him further into the background. First, in 2010, an audio tape of him asking for money from a Chinese businessman to bribe lawmakers was leaked. Then, in 2019, he was forced to resign as Speaker of the House after a parliament staffer accused him of attempted rape. The first case never went to court and he was acquitted of the second charge.

Now, he has been dragged into the gold smuggling scandal that is currently being investigated by the Nepal Police’s Central Investigation Bureau. Last week, an investigation committee formed to look into the many cases of gold smuggling through Tribhuvan International Airport had named Mahara and his son Rahul as persons of interest. Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane duly instructed the police to act on the report, leading to Mahara’s arrest from Kapilvastu on Monday, March 18. He was then remanded into custody for four days by the Kathmandu District Court.

In October last year, when the scandal first broke, the police had discovered links between the alleged smugglers and the Mahara father-son duo. Mahara senior was not investigated, simply made to provide a statement and then let go. His son Rahul, however, was arrested and charged. The investigation committee pointed out this lapse, leading Lamichhane to direct the police to reopen the case and look into Mahara specifically. Now, whether the police were instructed by previous Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha to not look too deep into Mahara or whether the police themselves did so to not upset the Maoist-controlled ministry is unclear. Regardless, it looks like Mahara senior too was closely involved in the smuggling as the police reportedly found over 250 instances of telephonic communication between Mahara and the smugglers. You don’t call or text someone over 250 times if you don’t know them very well.

Still, it remains to be seen whether anything will come of this investigation. While it is a good sign that Mahara was taken into custody, filing charges and actually prosecuting him will be an uphill task. I guess it really depends on Lamichhane’s appetite for clashing with his Maoist prime minister. Mahara might not have Dahal’s ear as much anymore but he remains a powerful figure within the party structure. We shall see what comes of the police’s investigation.

Binod Chaudhary under investigation

Yet another high-profile figure is being investigated for his alleged role in the Bansbari land scam. Binod Chaudhary, resident billionaire and Member of Parliament from the Nepali Congress party, was called in to provide a statement over the land scam, which had earlier implicated his brother, Arun Chaudhary. The land scam is complicated to get into too much detail here but in summary, members of the Chaudhary family are alleged to have been involved in the illegal transfer of 10 ropanis of land owned by the Bansbari

Binod had perhaps felt that he was untouchable, given his wealth and political support, so he was noticeably irked at having been called in by the police. After providing a statement, he spoke to the press, saying that the government was attempting to ‘politicize’ the business community and businessmen like himself and called the investigation a ‘political stunt’.

That’s pretty rich, coming from Mr Chaudhary who pretty much bought his way into elected office. He has been deeply enmeshed in politics ever since the days of the monarchy, something he admitted himself in his autobiography. People affiliated to him and his company have also been involved in tweaking tax rates in the yearly budget. So no, Mr Chaudhary, you don’t get to have it both ways. You can’t be a political figure with membership in a political party and then complain that you are being ‘politicized’.

Again, we shall have to wait and see what happens. While it can be satisfying for us ordinary folk to see these powerful figures under investigation, nothing will change unless the investigation is free of political interference and if credible evidence emerges that Mr Chaudhary was truly involved in the scam, he is formally charged and prosecuted in a court of law. That is still a long way off and perhaps might not even happen. We shall see.

Nepal-China to sign BRI implementation agreement

Nepal signed up Chinese President Xi Jinping’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2017. At that time, Nepal had identified a massive list of 35 projects to be funded fully or partially by China under the BRI. The Chinese did not agree, asking Nepal to reduce the number of projects. Nepal did so, whittling the list down to nine. These include roads, transmission lines, hydroelectricity projects, and a feasibility study for the proposed Kerung-Kathmandu rail. But seven years later, not a single project has moved forward under the BRI and that’s not due to any lagging on the Chinese side. It is Nepal that has dilly-dallied, prompting the Chinese to begin unilaterally declaring completed projects as part of the BRI. For instance, Pokhara International Airport, built under a soft loan from China EXIM Bank, was categorized as a BRI project by Chinese Ambassador to Nepal Chen Song in June 2023. Nepal vehemently denied this claim.

It looks like there might finally be some progress on the BRI. Newly appointed Foreign Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha is reportedly preparing to move forward with the implementation agreement for the BRI while he is in China next week. Many still have misgivings over the BRI and allegations of Nepal falling into a ‘debt trap’. But from what I understand, Nepal will seek grants and soft loans at 1 percent interest as much as possible. Although the Chinese appear reluctant to wholly finance Nepal’s projects, some arrangement will likely be worked out before Nepal moves ahead with implementation. This is a pragmatic approach but it cannot hold the entire BRI agreement hostage. Nepal needs to do its homework and make certain that the terms favor Nepal, not China. I am all for taking money from any friendly country, whether it is China, India, or the US but this money must come in the form of grants, not high-interest loans that could lead to a debt trap.

In that regard, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has also asked the Chinese to convert the loan used to finance the Pokhara International Airport into a grant. This airport has become an albatross around the neck of the government. Although the airport came into operation last year, not a single international flight, except for chartered flights from China, has flown here. This has led to mounting debt as the airport has been unable to make any money to pay back the Chinese loan. It appears that Dahal wants to cut losses and play the Chinese at their own game. Since Ambassador Chen stated that the airport was a BRI program even when it wasn’t, Dahal seems to trying to twist China’s arm to basically get the airport for free. Perhaps this could also be a precondition to signing the implementation agreement.

Home Ministry circular on social media backfires

Barely two weeks in office and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane is already courting controversy. This is not to say that he was ever free of controversy; conflict has dogged him at every step since he decided to enter politics. On Wednesday, the Home Ministry issued a circular to all 77 District Administration Offices (DAO) demanding each DAO set up a desk to monitor and take action against any news or social media post deemed to be defamatory, baseless, or misleading; that incited ethnic and cultural disharmony; that harmed national unity, integrity, sovereignty; and/or infringed on the privacy of individuals.

The circular was met with immediate criticism. Many saw it as an attempt by the government to exercise control over public expression and freedom of speech under the guise of regulation. Such attempts have been made in the past too, so activists and media persons are acutely aware of what such circulars could turn into. When such broad restrictions are imposed on speech, they are very likely to be misused to censor individuals’ right to free speech. Such restrictions have been included in the Directive on the Operation of Social Networking, which human rights activists and organizations have roundly opposed.

Fortunately, Lamichhane backtracked and the Home Ministry withdrew the circular just a day later. There is certainly a problem with social media in the country. The number of cybercrimes perpetrated over the internet and social media is rising every year. But the solution is not to enact restrictions on what people can and cannot say; it is to strengthen the ability of existing organizations like the Nepal Police’s cybercrime division to better monitor social media and prosecute those involved in illegal activities. It is also better to create legislation that is specific and targeted instead of vague circulars and directives that provide broad leeway to investigating and prosecuting authorities to interpret social media posts.

House obstruction, Speaker off to Switzerland

Despite the amount of noise Members of Parliament make, they rarely seem to do the job that they’ve been elected to do — create legislation. During the last parliamentary session, only one bill, besides the annual budget bill, was passed even as 18 bills are currently at the Lower House and three more at the Upper House. Most of these bills are stuck at the committee level, which have not managed to hold discussions and pass these bills to the larger House for deliberation and eventual voting. More recently, the opposition Nepali Congress has taken to obstructing the House in protest of Rabi Lamichhane’s appointment as Home Minister. Lamichhane is currently accused of misappropriating funds from financial cooperatives.

Seeing this state of affairs, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal had promised to make the Parliament function better, but alas. At a time when important bills are up for discussion, Speaker of the House Devraj Ghimire has decided to depart for Switzerland on a junket, shutting down the House of Representatives for 10 days. Ghimire left for Switzerland on Thursday, March 21, with a team-member team that includes chief whips of the four major political parties. The team will be attending the 148th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).

I understand that government officials have international obligations and are expected to attend certain major events. However, most senior government officials seem to disregard their duties at home to take such trips abroad on the taxpayer’s dime. Indeed, many government secretaries and elected officials consider such trips an essential perk of the job. They get to travel to foreign lands with all expenses paid either by the government or the host country and they even get a hefty USD per diem. In return, they give a speech or two and attend a few conferences. In their free time, they rarely tour the city they are in, choosing often to spend time with other Nepalis at a Nepali restaurant eating Nepali food, and participating in Nepali cultural programs. Of course it’s necessary to maintain contact with Nepalis in foreign lands but it dismays me that government officials rarely try to learn about the cities and countries they find themselves in.

But I digress. Should the Speaker of the House have departed for Switzerland at this moment when the House is in disarray? Should his focus not have been on his job? I imagine he could’ve sent someone else in his stead but he chose not to. He could’ve also provided the Deputy Speaker with the authority to conduct the House in his absence but he did not do so, choosing to adjourn the House for 10 days instead. The media often points out these trips as distracting from the job and I agree. They are distracting and donors and international organizations should attempt to minimize such trips, especially at crucial points in the domestic calendar.

That’s it for this week’s round-up. Enjoy the deep dive and I’ll see you next week!

Image generated with Microsoft Designer

This week, on Monday, police took Krishna Bahadur Mahara, vice-chair of the Maoist party and former Speaker of the House, into custody for investigation into his links to the gold smuggling racket. He was presented before the Kathmandu District Court, which remanded him into custody for four days. However, almost immediately, he was allowed to be admitted to the Norvic Hospital due to his ‘health’. So Mahara will effectively not spend a single day in jail.

There is a long tradition of high-profile individuals being admitted to hospitals right after being convicted or arrested. They suddenly seem to come up with vague ailments like high blood pressure and require immediate hospitalization, that too in a very fancy expensive private hospital that functions more like a hotel room. Of course, the stress of getting arrested could definitely trigger latent illnesses and I’m sure some of these cases are genuine. But even such illnesses could be treated with medication. I would dare that a significant majority of Nepal’s adult male population over the age of 50 has high blood pressure but all of them aren’t in hospital.

Mahara himself has done it before. In October 2019, Mahara, who was Speaker at the time, was accused of attempted rape by a staffer at the Parliament. The woman had been having a long-standing affair with Mahara and accused him of beating and attempting to rape her while under the influence. The case became a big scandal and although there was a wealth of evidence showing that Mahara had indeed been at the woman’s apartment, the courts deemed the evidence insufficient and acquitted him. But I digress. Back then too, Mahara had been admitted to Norvic Hospital after being arrested for high blood pressure and high blood sugar.

Mahara is not the only one, though. Everyone does it. It’s a time-tested method of avoiding spending any time in jail. On February 1, businessman Arun Chaudhary, the brother of billionaire Binod Chaudhary, and Ajit Man Singh Thapa, a former government employee, were arrested for investigation into their roles in the Bansbari land grab scam. They too were immediately admitted to Grande Hospital for hypertension, diabetes, and ‘health complications’.

The list of offenders is long so I won’t go into each of them. Suffice it to say that they are all either wealthy or powerful, usually both. They include Min Bahadur Gurung, the owner of Bhatbhateni supermarkets, who was admitted to Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital after being arrested for his alleged role in the Lalita Niwas land grab. The fake godman Krishna Das Giri ‘Siddhababa’ was accused of rape in 2020 and also admitted to the hospital after being arrested. In 2020, Prithvi Malla, the young scion of a powerful aristocratic family, was arrested after hitting and killing a woman while under the influence. He too was admitted to Chirayu Hospital immediately upon arrest and spent barely any time in jail. Naresh Thapa, the brother of former Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa, also spent his police custody in hospital after being arrested for extortion in 2019.

These individuals have discovered a loophole in the system. The police are obligated to ensure that people in their custody have access to healthcare. They take these individuals to government-run public hospitals, usually Bir Hospital. Bir then transfers them to private hospitals upon request. At these private hospitals, they stay in private rooms where nurses attend to them and they can relax, watch some television, and even receive guests. It’s like not being in custody at all. It’s a win-win for the hospitals too. They get a patient that they barely have to look after but one who pays for admittance to private cabins that cost an arm and a leg. The rich and powerful prefer Norvic, Chirayu, and Grande, all very expensive private hospitals where one night in a private room can cost upwards of Rs 10,000.

There is of course a world of difference between how the police treat these kinds of prisoners and ordinary folk. Marginalized communities are far more likely to be tortured and brutalized while in custody. In 2019, images of Resham Chaudhary, a Tharu man arrested for masterminding the Tikapur violence, shackled to his hospital bed were widely shared on social media. While powerful individuals get to claim sickness and pass their time in expensive hospital rooms, the less fortunate get shackled to beds in cheap government hospitals for actual health conditions. Resham Chaudhary was made an example of, a fact that Tharus bitterly resented. He was elected Member of Parliament before his arrest and sentencing, and he founded the Nagarik Unmukti Party, which currently has four seats in federal Parliament, three provincial assembly seats, and four local units. Chaudhary remains in jail.

I understand not wanting to be jailed. No one wants to spend any time in jail, especially Nepali jail. A lot can be said about the practice of holding people in custody for investigation. The police have to show sufficient cause before a court but the courts are usually quite lenient and provide at least a few days. If you actually committed a crime and are eventually formally charged and sentenced, the days spent in custody count towards your sentence. For an innocent person, this is certainly unfair. You have to spend jail time for something you didn’t do while the police investigate. But that’s a different debate. The issue here is that the privileged are able to buy their way out. The vast majority of Nepalis cannot afford days, weeks, or months in a private hospital room.

Everyone is complicit here, from the lawyers who advise their clients to the doctors who sign off on hospitalizing these people for nonexistent ailments. But if such a loophole exists, why wouldn’t people take advantage of it? It’s on the authorities to close this loophole, maybe by requiring permission from a medical board of two or three independent doctors who will assess whether hospitalization is really required. Or perhaps to institute a policy that mandates that they only be allowed hospitalization in government-run institutions. Maybe then the quality of these hospitals will finally go up. But why would the authorities do this when they might need hospitalization if the occasion arrives?

Amidst the countless ways in which the system is rigged in favor of the rich and powerful, this is but one more. It might not seem like a major issue but it is a symptom of a deeply flawed system that remains in place despite the numerous changes to the political order. Of course, there will always be the privileged few but they cannot be allowed to game the very system that is supposed to punish them for their misdeeds.

That’s all for this week. I will be back next Friday, in your emails, for the next edition of Off the Record.

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