Kathmandu, Nepal, December 24, 2019: The lawmakers from the ruling and opposition party have demanded clarifications from the government about the ‘controversial decision’ to extend the lease for Gokarna Forest Resort to the Yeti Group.
As the previous act of the Nepal Trust prohibited the leasing of Trust property to any private interests the government had amended the act paving the way to lease trust properties to any private interest before extending lease agreement with Yeti Group. The lease agreement followed by the amendment in the law has fall into controversies from different quarters.
As the government extended the lease period of six years prior to the expiry of the current lease agreement going against of the public procurement act, not only the lawmakers but also the people in general have raised serious question marks over the government’s zero tolerance commitment against corruption.
Serious controversies have arisen after government made the decision to extend the lease period by amending in the act of the Trust that contradicts with the public procurement act. It is alleged that the interests of Prime Minister KP Oli himself would have involved in the lease agreement. Though, the issue is yet to be investigated, it is suspected that misappropriation of over Rs 6 billion would have involved in the agreement.
Suspecting of misappropriations, the parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has initiated investigation the cases related to the lease agreement with the Yeti Group. The PAC has already asked the Nepal Trust office to furnish all documents relating to contracts awarded to the Yeti Group.
While addressing the National Assembly on Monday, Nepali Congress lawmaker Radheshyam Adhikari and ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) chief whip Khim Lal Bhattarai demanded a government clarification concerning its decision to give Nepal Trust land to the Yeti group.
There was some ill-intention behind an amendment made to the Nepal Trust Act and this could potentially turn out to be a serious case of policy-level corruption, Adhikari said alleging that the government would have amended to the Nepal Trust Act to benefit to one particular business group.
Likewise, NCP Chief Whip Bhattarai also demanded clarifications from the government over the issue concerning the lease extension for Gokarna Forest Resort. Since the government is facing criticism from various quarters over the issue of lease agreement, it is the responsibility of the government to clarify, Bhattrai said.
Likewise, lawmaker from the main opposition NC also has sought clarification from the government for failing to take concrete measures to bring back the Nepali territories encroached by the southern neighbor India in different parts of the country including in Kalapani.
Speaking during the session of the National Assembly on Monday, NC lawmaker Badri Pandey criticized the government for failing even to make its position clear to India that encroached Kalapani is Nepal's integral part as per the Sugauli Treaty signed between Nepal and India.
It is astonishing that the government is not making its position clear regarding the encroached Nepali land; NC lawmaker Pandey said adding that the government has to make clear before the parliament regarding the steps taken by the government agencies concerned to retrieve encroached Nepali territory.
The government has been claiming that it would not allow encroaching even one inch of its sovereign land but doing nothing else to retrieve the encroached land, lawmaker Pande said raising question marks over the government, particularly the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Foreign Affairs Minister Pradip Gyanwali.
