Kathmandu, A corruption case has been filed against Dr. Sangita Bhandari, the former Vice-Chancellor of Rapti Health Science Academy, over alleged irregularities in the procurement of an MRI machine. The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) filed the case at the Special Court, accusing her of corruption amounting to NPR 120 million (approx. USD 900,000).

There are 13 defendants in total in this case, including Dr. Bhandari.

Dr. Sangita Bhandari, who has been named the main accused by the CIAA, is also the sister of former Minister and leader of the Loktantrik Samajwadi Party, Sharad Singh Bhandari. Dr. Sangita is known to be a controversial figure and currently serves as a professor at BP Koirala Institute of Health Sciences.

She is accused of attempting to influence the investigation using a CIAA commissioner, allegedly by leveraging her connections with former Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba. It is also reported that she made financial offers in an attempt to remove officials from the CIAA who were investigating her, which has caused significant controversy.

Just this Wednesday, the CIAA filed another major corruption case related to the Lichhibari land scam in Pokhara, targeting two ministers from the then KP Sharma Oli and Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) coalition government. The CIAA is preparing to file nearly half a dozen major corruption cases. On Wednesday alone, the CIAA filed corruption cases at the Special Court against seven individuals, including two former ministers, and is now preparing to take action against more high-profile individuals.

The CIAA is nearing the conclusion of investigations into various high-profile cases, including irregularities in visit visas, procurement of medical equipment, airport construction scams, and illegal wealth accumulation.

According to CIAA sources, a corruption case involving Joint Secretary Teertha Raj Bhattarai regarding the visit visa scandal is currently in the pipeline. The investigation into Bhattarai, who served as the Chief Immigration Officer at Tribhuvan International Airport, and middlemen involved in visa setting is in its final phase.

In the Lichhibari land scam in Pokhara, although former Minister Balram was spared, cases were filed against Rajkumar and Ranjita, leading to heavy criticism. As a result, Balram is now also set to face investigation.

Just yesterday, in connection with the land scam, the CIAA filed corruption cases against seven individuals, including two former ministers. Among them was Rajkumar Gupta, who served as Minister of General Administration under the KP Oli-led government, and Ranjita Shrestha, chairperson of the NUP (Nagarik Unmukti Party) and former Minister for Land Management. Minister Gupta has accused fellow Land Management and Cooperatives Minister Balram Adhikari of having taken bribes, which prompted the CIAA to launch an investigation. Although Balram was initially spared, public criticism has led to the decision to investigate him as well.