Nepalkhabar has found more list of scams of Nawraj Pokharel, the Honorary Consul of Nepal to Romania, who collects more than double the amount of the specified revenue in the name of passport renewal.
It has been found that Pokharel charges 100,000 rupees per 120 workers for recommending certification of demand letters for Nepali migrant workers. In addition, evidence has shown that the money was deposited by the operators of Nepali manpower agencies into the bank accounts of various individuals in Kathmandu.
According to the documents and details received, he has deposited money in the bank accounts of various relatives in Kathmandu. Some people who collect money in his name in Kathmandu and their bank accounts are as follows:
The demand for Nepali workers for various companies in Romania has increased in the last few years. In the past three years, 10,000 Nepali workers have gone to Romania.
The Nepali manpower companies should get the demand letter attested from the Consulate of Nepal in Bucharest. Once the demand letter is attested by the consulate, the Nepali Embassy in Berlin, Germany verifies it.
According to the information on the website of the embassy, the verification of 1 to 25 people generates revenue of 265 euros, 26 to 100 people 310, and if it is more than 100, it would cost 355 euros.
It has been found that Pokharel has made a demand letter of 120 people. Based on this calculation, it costs 355 euros per demand letter in government revenue, i.e., 50 thousand Nepali rupees at most. According to the current exchange rate, the revenue comes to around Rs 49,700.
However, it has been found that Pokharel charges double the fees set by the government, i.e., Rs100, 000, that too in Nepal.
Here, Pokharel has asked to deposit money in Nepal's bank accounts for the work done in Romania. Further, he has taken more than double the prescribed revenue.
The transaction itself is illegal
On the one hand, Pokharel seems to have been engaged in money laundering by making Romanian job aspirants deposit money in a bank in Nepal while working abroad, and on the other hand, he has committed bribery by charging more than the prescribed revenue for government work. The manpower operators have alleged that he has been harassing businessmen and laborers by procrastinating verification and bargaining for a large sum of money.
According to Deepak Lamichhane, the director of Nepal Rastra Bank, whether it is for any government work or personal transaction, if the amount to be paid abroad is arranged in Nepal, it is a crime of misappropriation of foreign currency. Similarly, if a fee is charged more than the prescribed amount, the receiver can be prosecuted for fraud in accordance with the Bank and Financial Institution Act, 2017.
I also had doubts: Kamala Pokharel
According to the details obtained by Nepalkhabar, Consul Pokharel seems to have collected the most funds in the accounts opened in the name of Kamala Pokharel. Kamala has also admitted that this transaction was done from her account and said that she stopped it after getting suspicious.
"Nawaraj is a person of my acquaintance," she said on the telephone, "Earlier, money used to be deposited in my account in his name. Later, I also doubted it. It has now been stopped after being told not to deposit the amount without the source being disclosed.
I took the necessary expenses: Pokharel
Consul Pokharel said that he only took the money for government revenue and the expenses for making other required documents. He says, "Many paper documents have to be prepared. The seal of the Chamber of Commerce should be affixed. And 20 percent consulate charge. That's the amount I took."
Operators of manpower companies say that their costs have increased due to Consul Pokharel asking for additional funds under various pretexts and not forwarding the documents on time until the funds are provided.
Even if Pokharel collects extra money from manpower company operators, the victims are the workers who want to go abroad for foreign employment for their livelihood. On the one hand, when the cost is high, the manpower company operators collect that amount from the workers, on the other hand, if they have to wait for a long time, they have to spend a lot of money due to the prolonged stay in the city.
