Five charged after ward chair allegedly used own thumbprint 360 times to draw welfare payments

The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), Nepal’s constitutional anti-corruption body, has filed a corruption case at the Special Court in Kathmandu against five people over the distribution of social security allowances in ward 9 (the Pokhali area) of Likhu Rural Municipality in Okhaldhunga district. The case, filed on 6 November (20 Kartik 2083 BS), claims a total of Rs 3,167,200 (Rs 31.672 lakh).

The case concerns payments made in fiscal years 2075/76 and 2076/77 BS (2018/19 and 2019/20). It is a charge sheet setting out the commission’s allegations; the court has made no finding of guilt.

The allegations

According to Kanun Khabar and other media, the main allegation is against the then ward chair. The CIAA claims that, instead of the real beneficiaries, he used his own right thumbprint 360 times to receive, or cause to be received, Rs 2,915,200 (Rs 29.152 lakh).

The commission also alleges that duplicate names were kept on the beneficiary list, that allowances were shown as paid in the names of beneficiaries who had died or moved away without removing them from the list, and that false entries were made in government records, causing a loss to the state treasury.

The defendants

• the then ward chair;
• two former chief administrative officers of the rural municipality, one of them Abhay Kumar Gupta;
• the then acting chief administrative officer, Dinanath Chaudhary;
• the then MIS (management information system) operator, Khila BK.

Kanun Khabar reported that different amounts, ranging from Rs 794,400 to Rs 1,167,200, are claimed from the chief administrative officers, while the full Rs 3,167,200 is claimed from the ward chair and the MIS operator.

Legal basis

The CIAA has brought the case under sections 17 and 11 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2059 (2002). It is seeking imprisonment as provided by law, a fine equal to the amount claimed (bigo) and recovery of that amount.

Why it matters

Social security allowances are regular cash payments from the state to target groups such as senior citizens, single women and persons with disabilities, and they are distributed through local governments. Allegations that payments were shown against the names of dead or migrated beneficiaries point to weaknesses in how beneficiary records are updated and monitored at local level.

What happens next

The Special Court will now take the defendants’ statements and proceed to hearings. The defendants’ responses have not been made public; they will have the opportunity to defend themselves in court.

Sources

Media reports spell some defendants’ names differently (including the then ward chair and one chief administrative officer), so those names are not published here. This report will be updated when the CIAA’s official press release is obtained.

Other reporting

• Charge sheet filed against five including ward chair over social security allowance (Nepali) — Kanun Khabar, 6 Nov 2026
• Irregularities in social security allowance: corruption case against five in Likhu (Nepali) — Annapurna Post, 6 Nov 2026
• Case filed against five over social security allowance embezzlement (Nepali) — Radio Nepal, 6 Nov 2026