They are of the view that the non-refundable commitment money sent by NAC to Airbus Company has still not lapsed; thus no corruption has taken place.[break]
The division bench of SC Justices Khil Raj Regmi and Prakash Wasti has been hearing the writ petition filed by Kansakar and the five NAC officials for the past few days.
"The amount deposited in the account of Airbus Company is valid till March 31, 2011 and it has not lapsed," lawyer Bhimarjun Acharya informed the bench. Lawyers Acharya, Shambhu Thapa, Sushil Panta and Badri Bahadur Karki, among others, are pleading before the SC on behalf of Kansakar.
Kansakar and the five other accused NAC officials had moved the SC against the chargesheet filed by the CIAA.
Concluding that Kansakar and the five others embezzled Rs 57.3 million in sending non-refundable money to Airbus in contravention of the Public Procurement Act, the anti-graft body had filed suit at the Special Court on December 25.
The lawyers also argued that CIAA Secretary Bhagwati Kafle cannot take the decision to file suit. "Secretary Kafle does not enjoy the authority of CIAA commissioners. Though he was delegated the powers of a commissioner after the retirement of commissioners, the commissioners´ sagacity, capabilities and trust cannot be transferred to him," the lawyers pleaded.
Those who have been pleading on behalf of the CIAA and NAC Managing Director Kul Bahadur Limbu argued that the decision to send lockup money to Airbus without the approval of the NAC Board of Directors had incurred loss to the state and thus there was corruption in the Airbus deal.
"How can the apex court interfere in a matter already registered at the Special Court as a corruption case?" lawyers pleading for the prosecution asked. CIAA Investigation Officer Dilli Raman Acharya, lawyers Harihar Dahal, Hari Uprety, Shankar Shrestha and Deputy Attorney General Raj Narayan Pathak, among others, have been representing the CIAA and Limbu before the bench.
The SC is holding hearings on the writ petition Friday also.
Ignoring a 15-day summons by the Special Court, Kansakar and the other accused had moved the SC against the CIAA action three weeks back.
The five other officials accused of involvement in the case are Acting Assistant General Managers Raju Bahadur KC and Ganesh Thakur, Acting Director Gyanendra Purush Dhakal, Director Mayur Sumsher Rana and Acting Deputy Director Keshav Raj Sharma.
CIAA expedites Sudan scam probe
Meanwhile, the CIAA has expedited investigations into the Sudan scam. Two separate investigation teams, one led by lawmaker Pradip Gyawali, had concluded that around Rs 300 million was embezzled while procuring Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) and other logistics for Nepali peacekeepers two years ago.
"We have expedited the investigation process and are currently probing into technical aspects like procurement and payment process," said a knowledgeable CIAA source.
The State Affairs Committee (SAC) of parliament had also directed the government and the CIAA to immediately take action against those involved in the scam and supply the APCs to the mission at the earliest.
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