Amid mounting public pressure, the CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal-led coalition is finally preparing to make public property details of its ministers four months after assuming power.

Officials at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) said it has been delayed by the Cabinet.

According to PMO Spokesperson Damodar Regmi, submitting property details is a mandatory provision and as per the guideline, PM, DPMs, ministers, state ministers and assistant ministers should submit details of their movable and immovable property within 60 days from the date of taking the oath of office.

PM Dahal’s Chief Political Advisor Chakrapani Khanal claimed that all the property details had been collected long time ago but expressed his ignorance why the Cabinet has not endorsed the details. “I have directed Chief Secretary to do the needful through the next Cabinet,” Khanal said. Chief Secretary Som Lal Subedi, however, said there was no provision of taking the proposal to the Cabinet. “The Cabinet itself should take the decision,” Subedi claimed, adding, “We are discussing the issue and a decision will be taken soon.”  

Regmi also maintained that property details of all the ministers had been collected. “I have already assigned the IT under secretary to upload the scanned property details of all the ministers to the PMO’s official website,” he said. Section 50 of the Corruption Prevention Act, 2002, mandates ministers to submit their property details and the failure to do so attracts a fine of Rs50,000 under the existing law.