Donation of land from Min Bahadur to CPN-UML Under SC scrutiny as corruption case

KATHMANDU: A writ petition has been filed at the Supreme Court against the land acquired by the CPN-UML in Kirtipur for the construction of its new party office.

Advocate Gyan Bahadur Basnet filed the writ, claiming that accepting the land, allegedly donated by Min Bahadur Gurung, the owner of Bhat-Bhateni Department Store, and establishing a party office on it constitutes corruption.

Initially, the Supreme Court had refused to register the writ and had rejected it. However, on Tuesday, a bench of Justice Til Prasad Shrestha reversed the rejection and ordered the registration of the writ.

Following this order, the Supreme Court’s administration confirmed that the writ has now been registered. The petition demands the cancellation of the land donation, which Gurung allegedly gave to the CPN-UML for the construction of its central office. The court has scheduled a hearing on the matter today.

The petitioner claims that donating land to the party of the sitting Prime Minister constitutes corruption, especially since the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) and the Department of Money Laundering Investigation are already investigating businessman Gurung.

The writ further states, “It is clear that Prime Minister KP Oli has illegally accepted a bribe. By personally attending the foundation stone-laying ceremony and accepting the donation, the Prime Minister has committed an unforgivable act of corruption.”

On Oct 11, Gurung, the owner of Bhat-Bhateni Superstore, announced that he had donated 10 ropanis and 14 annas of land in Maitrinagar, Kirtipur-2, Kathmandu, to the CPN-UML for the construction of their central office.

On the same day, UML Chair Oli and the Gurung couple jointly laid the foundation stone for the building. The current market value of the land is estimated to be around NPR 700 million.