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The CPN (Maoist Center) has urged Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak to resign from his post to allow for an 'impartial' investigation into the visit visa scandal.

During a National Assembly meeting today, Suresh Ale Magar of the Maoist Center demanded time to argue that a fair investigation into the scam would be unlikely as long as the Home Minister remains in office, given that employees of the Home Ministry have been implicated in the scandal.

“We believe the Home Minister is not personally responsible for any wrongdoing, but he should step down on moral grounds to facilitate investigation, making it uninfluenced,” he said. 

Ale Magar also questioned why an employee previously accused in various scams was assigned responsibility for immigration.

Speaking during the zero hour, Krishna Prasad Paudel raised concerns over the rising COVID-19 cases in India, stressing the need to enhance surveillance and testing along the Nepal-India border.

Goma Devi Timilsina urged the government to prioritize launching public awareness campaigns about COVID-19.

Sonam Gyaljen Sherpa called for prompt relief efforts for those displaced by natural disasters in Thame, Solukhumbu district.

Likewise,  Jagat Bahadur Parki, Nara Bahadur Bista, Narayan Dutta Mishra, Bhuwan Bahadur Sunar, Madan Kumari Shah (Garima), Yubaraj Sharma, and Rajendra Laxmi Gaire highlighted various other contemporary issues, drawing the government attention.

The Birgunj Customs Office has collected revenue of Rs 65.5 billion from the import of petroleum products during the last 10 months in the current fiscal year. 

As shared, the Office has spent Rs 155. 94 billion for the import of five kinds of petro products in the reporting period. 

Of the total revenue received from the import, the petro products have the 46.26 percent contribution. 

Chief Customs Administrator at Birgunj Office Deepak Lamichhane said that the main source of customs revenue here is the import of petroleum products and vehicles. 

Likewise, the import of transport vehicles and their parts has collected revenue of Rs 15.24 billion. With this, the import of vehicles and parts has a total share of 10.93 percent on the revenue received from the customs duty. 

The Office has gathered revenue of Rs 5.25 billion from the iron and iron-made products. Likewise, it has collected revenue of Rs 4.55 billion from the import of machinery and parts. 

Lamichhane further informed that the revenue of Rs 3.37 billion was collected from the import of electric machinery, accessories and their parts. 

The Office has collected Rs 2.87 billion revenue from the import of all types of clothes in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year. 

Other revenue sources include Rs 2.23 billion from the import of tobacco and tobacco products and Rs 2.22 billion from cosmetics items. 

A new non-fiction title chronicling Nepal’s contemporary political history has hit the stands, drawing attention from readers and analysts alike. Contours of Change in Nepal: Politics, Power and Paradox, authored by Tika P. Dhakal and published by Alchemy Publications, was officially released on May 23 and is reportedly performing well in bookstores.

The book looks into a range of critical themes that have shaped the Nepali polity in recent years, including the constitution-drafting process, the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) compact, evolving Nepal-India relations, regional diplomacy, and the country’s transitional justice mechanisms. It offers a broad yet incisive account of how these issues intersect to influence Nepal’s political and geopolitical trajectory.

Structured into eighteen sections, the volume combines previously published articles—many of which are re-edited and accompanied by new postscripts—with entirely new and unpublished chapters. Several entries are bolstered by the inclusion of original and unreleased documents, enhancing the book’s utility for researchers and students of Nepal’s recent history.

As a semi-academic non-fiction work, the book appears to resonate well with English-language readers seeking a deeper understanding of Nepal’s shifting political contours.

Author Tika P. Dhakal is no stranger to Nepal’s political discourse. He served as an advisor to former President Bidya Devi Bhandari for nearly three years and has been recently appointed as a Commissioner to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the high-level body tasked with investigating conflict-era human rights violations.

By knitting analysis with documentary evidence, Dhakal’s Contours of Change in Nepal positions itself as a timely and substantive contribution to the study of Nepal’s contemporary socio-political landscape.

Egyptian Ambassador to Nepal Noha Hamdy Ahmed ElGebaly today paid a farewell call on President Ram Chandra Paudel. 

On the occasion, they exchanged views on matters relating to bilateral relations between the two countries, mutual interests and concerns, the Office of the President said. 

The President expressed gratitude to the ambassador for successfully completing her tenure. 

The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) today filed corruption cases  at the Special Court against 18 individuals, including Nepal Telecom's then Managing Director Sunil Poudel and then Chief Business Officer (incumbent Managing Director) Sangeeta Pahadi. 

CIAA spokesperson Rajendra Kumar Poudel said that a case has been filed against them alleging irregularities in the billing of services including Nepal Telecom's GSM mobile, fiber internet, leased line, wire line, and wireless due to the illegal purchase and sales. The CIAA has argued that there was bad faith in the purchase of related equipment and also the misappropriation of public assets.

The CIAA filed a case against the then Managing Director of Telecom Sunil Poudel, Managing Director Pahadi, then Chief Technical Officer Pratibha Shrestha, and Financial Officer Rajendra Shrestha, claiming recouping Rs 334. 81 million from them all.

Similarly, a case has been filed against the then Chief Operating Officer Jhabindra Lal Upadhyay, then Director Binita Shrestha, Acting Director Amul Pradhan, Manager Devendra Khatiwada, Deputy Manager Rajiv Kumar KC, Santosh Kumar Shrestha, Nawal Chaudhary, Mukti Prasad Aryal, Hemprabha Rampratap Karna, and Paramatma Bhattarai, claiming recouping Rs 334. 81 million from them all. 

The Commission has stated that a claim for compensation amounting to Rs 334. 81 million has been made against three Chinese companies supplying goods and their representatives based in Nepal.

The CIAA claimed that a five-year agreement had been reached for an integrated billing system with the aim of causing losses to public corporations through mutual collusion. The Commission's spokesperson Poudel informed that a lawsuit has been filed today demanding action according to the loss and damages caused to Nepal Telecom.

The officials of the Land Problem Resolution Commission have apprised Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli about the progress of the work done by the commission so far. 

During a meeting at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Baluwatar today, the Commission officials reported to the PM that the commission is working in collaboration with all three tiers of the government on identifying landless Dalits, squatters, and unregistered inhabitants, collecting land records and carrying out certification, surveying, dispute resolution, as well as land registration and distribution of the land ownership certificates.

Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation Balram Adhikari was also present on the occasion.

Chairman of the commission, Hari Prasad Rijal, informed that a standard has been prepared to identify landless and the squatters who have not received housing and government land for the past 10 years, as well as those who have been living on government, public, and leasehold land for at least 10 years without proper arrangements. 

The commission officials mentioned that it would be easier for the commission to pursue its works if the bill to amend some land-related laws in Nepal is passed.

Prime Minister Oli expressed the confidence that the bill under consideration in Parliament would be passed soon and instructed the commission to proceed ahead with the identification of landless Dalits, squatters, and unregulated settlers in a planned and accelerated manner. 

The government formed the commission on October 30 last year.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) plunged by 11. 06 points to close at 2, 629. 89 points on Sunday.

The sensitive index, however, surged by 2. 05 points to close at 449. 27 points.

A total of 19,992,181-unit shares of 313 companies were traded for Rs 9. 13 billion.

Meanwhile,  River Falls Power Limited (RFPL) and Pure Energy Limited (PURE) were the top gainers today with their price surging by 9. 99 percent.

Likewise, Om Megashree Pharmaceuticals Limited (OMPL) was the top loser as its price fell by 10. 00 percent.

At the end of the day, the total market capitalization stood at Rs 4. 38 trillion.

Two persons died and 35 others were injured when a commuter bus and a school bus collided with each other at Bakhariya in Tulsipur Sub-Metropolitan City-14, Dang on Sunday.

Surya Rana, spokesperson at the Area Police Office, Tulsipur, informed that the deceased have been identified as Narayan Bhandari (25) and Shanta Khadka Chaudhary of Dangisharan Rural Municipality-1.

The incident occurred when the bus (Na 4 Kha 4009) heading towards Tulsipur from Goltakuri collided head-on with the school bus (Ra 1 Ka 870) belonging to Gyanjyoti Boarding School today.

After the collision, the bus fell some 500 meters down the road, the Area Police Office, Tulsipur informed.

All the injured have been taken to Rapti Provincial Hospital, Tulsipur for treatment.

Police said that they are looking into the case.