Chief District Officer of Kathmandu Ek Narayan Aryal was on Thursday transferred to District Administration Office, Morang.

Aryal had been the Chief of Kathmandu District for past one year. Ram Krishna Subedi, joint-secretary at the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority has replaced Aryal.  

Aryal’s transfer comes close on the heels of raids conducted by police administration under District Administration Office’s supervision, including that on Dugar Foodland at Jadibuti in Bhaktapur.

Police had seized five trucks of cooking oil of various brands and filed a case under black marketeering.

Aryal had come under pressure from political and bureaucratic circles following the raid on Dugar Company, sources said, adding that prime accused Kishanlal Dugar, the group’s proprietor, and his son Naresh who is believed to be in hiding in India have been using their political clout to influence the investigation.

Following the blockade imposed by India and protest in the Tarai, Aryal had initiated a series of raids in petrol pumps that were found tampering the fuel dispenser to cheat customers on fuel. Besides, many black marketeers selling fuel at exorbitant prices were also arrested.

Home Ministry spokesperson Laxmi Dhakal said the transfer is a routine process, without elaborating. Similarly, CDO of Nawalparasi Hari Mainali has been transferred to Kaski, with Yogendra Bahadur Karki being transferred to Nawalparasi.

Vehicle tax collection up

The Nepal Oil Corporation’s (NOC) decision to distribute fuel to only those vehicles that have cleared their taxes has suddenly increased tax collection inside Kathmandu Valley, transport management offices have reported.

People have been queuing at the offices of Department of Transport Management (DoTM) in places like Sano Bharyang, Talchhikhel and Sallaghari from early morning to pay the vehicle tax.

A DoTM official at Talchhikhel office said over 2,000 people have been visiting the office to clear the vehicle tax these days. On other days, the office used to receive around 500 taxpayers. A similar surge in the number of taxpayers has been reported from other DoTM offices. (PR)