The Special Court has determined that corruption amounting to 407 million 557 thousand rupees occurred in the procurement of the High Digital Print Production System at the Security Printing Center.
Former Acting Executive Director of the Center, Bikal Paudel, along with two others, has been found guilty in this corruption case.
A bench of Special Court Chairperson Tek Narayan Kunwar and members Tej Narayan Singh Rai and Ram Bahadur Thapa convicted Bikal as the main accused in this corruption case and sentenced him to 1 year and 6 months in prison.
Since he was the head of the public entity, an additional 6-month jail term was imposed. The court also ordered him to repay the embezzled amount of 135 million 852 thousand 580 rupees and slapped him with an equal fine.
The Special Court's verdict mentions that Bikal had requested separate budgets from the Nepal government for two different programs (related to cards and paper) to procure different printing machines and had also prepared procurement plans. However, he later merged both into a single package and colluded with contractors to commit corruption.
Out of the total allocated budget of Rs 760 million for both projects, Bikal was found to have acted dishonestly at every stage of the procurement process, disregarding integrity, accountability, and legal compliance.
Similarly, Pax International Pvt. Ltd. and the company's Chief Executive Officer, Akbar Hussain, have also been convicted in this case. The verdict states that Akbar colluded with Bikal and, through a company registered in his and his wife’s name, manipulated specifications and pricing to ensure the procurement was awarded to his company.
Pax International and Akbar Hussain have been ordered to pay a fine of 135 million 852 thousand 580 rupees and return an equivalent embezzled amount. Akbar has also been sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison, the same as Bikal Paudel.
Bikal Paudel, Pax International, and Akbar Hussain must also deposit 5 million 434 thousand 103 rupees as compensation into the Victim Relief Fund.
Other accused individuals—Safal Shrestha, Nabin Kumar Pokharel, Hari Ballabh Ghimire, and Khadka Bahadur Thapa—have been acquitted by the Special Court.
The verdict states that although they were involved in the procurement process under Bikal’s instructions, they had no decisive role, and their involvement was limited to their official duties without any malicious intent.
The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has filed other graft cases against Bikal in the information technology sector. Investigations revealed that he was involved in corruption across multiple projects in Nepal and stashed bribes in foreign bank accounts.
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