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‘All my investments are legal’
Founding President of Non Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) Upendra Mahato whose name has been mentioned in the Panama Papers for his offshore investments has claimed that all his investments are “legal”.Founding President of Non Resident Nepali Association (NRNA) Upendra Mahato whose name has been mentioned in the Panama Papers for his offshore investments has claimed that all his investments are “legal”.
Issuing a press statement on Wednesday, Mahato said being an NRN he has
made investments from the wealth earned in various foreign lands. “I have been staying abroad for the last 35 years, studying and doing business. It is natural to have various businesses and enterprise in the foreign land,” read the statement. “As my name was mentioned in the Panama Papers as an individual having offshore investment, I believe that it my responsibility to clarify that all my investments abroad are legal.” Mahato said he has investments in different countries complying with international law as well as the legal regime of those countries. “Nepali staying abroad can invest the wealth earned there to any parts of the world,” he said. “Besides, my investment in Nepal is also from the wealth I earned abroad.” Seven Nepalis have been mentioned in the Panama Papers, an unprecedented leak of 11.5 million files from the database of the Panama-based Mossack Fonseca by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. However, using offshore structures is not entirely illegal though.