KATHMANDU: The Special Court has issued an order for the detention of Sunil Paudel, the former managing director of Nepal Telecom, on charges related to the acquisition of illegal wealth. Yagya Raj Regmi, the Information Officer at the Special Court, disclosed that the decision was made by a bench comprising Judges Tej Narayan Singh Rai, Ram Bahadur Thapa, and Ritendra Thapa on April 24. Paudel is accused of accumulating Rs 237.5 million in illegal wealth through misuse of his official position, as alleged by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA).

The CIAA filed a corruption case against Paudel, asserting that his amassed assets were disproportionate to his reported income. Based on their investigation, which indicated evidence of illegal wealth acquisition, Paudel was arrested on January 24 and detained for further inquiry. Among the allegations against him are irregularities in the procurement process of the National Payment Gateway System.

Following the decision of the Special Court, Nepal Police sources confirmed that Paudel has been transferred to Dillibazar jail for detention. The case underscores ongoing efforts to address corruption and uphold accountability within public institutions.