The Kathmandu District Court has issued arrest warrants for 20 individuals, including former officials of the Nepal Children’s Organization (NCO), in connection with the Bal Mandir land lease scandal.
Superintendent of Police Hobindra Bogati, spokesperson for the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police, confirmed that the court has authorized the arrests linked to this case.
The warrants target not only former office-bearers of the NCO but also members of business groups involved in commercial activities on the organization’s land located in Naxal, Kathmandu.
Key figures named in the warrants include NCO’s former chair Rita Singh, vice-chair Tulsi Narayan Shrestha, general secretary Ganesh Bhakta Shrestha, and several others, including Krishna Shankar Sah and Shyam Kumar Ale.
Additionally, the court has issued warrants for members of Brihaspati Vidyasadan, including Chairman Chiranjeevi Tiwari and others.
The CIB began investigating the matter earlier this year. Recently, a complaint was filed with the CIB alleging that the organization’s land was leased at undervalued rates from 1992 to 2015, with the intention of inflicting financial losses on the NCO.
The complaint also claimed that a renewal agreement until 2032 was made before the previous one expired, suggesting malintent. According to the most recent agreement, approximately 29 ropanis of the NCO’s land at Naxal has been leased for Rs10.9 million annually. The Home Ministry has stated that the land was leased to the Joshi family and Vaidya Group.