Nepal’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) has arrested Pushparaj Bhattarai, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, over a fake refugee case dating back to 2008.
Bhattarai was taken into custody and presented before the Kathmandu District Court, where he will make a statement and the court will decide on his detention.
Case Background
According to the CIB’s charge sheet, between 2005 and 2006, Bhattarai, who was then working at the Passport Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, had issued five hundred travel documents. However, it was discovered that he had used these documents to send three Tibetans to Germany as fake refugees.
The German Embassy in Kathmandu had written to the CIB on August 28, 2008, requesting an investigation into five suspicious individuals, including Tenjing Namgyal Chungtso and Tenjing Tendar Chungsung.
The embassy had stated that these individuals had obtained travel documents in 2009, which were likely to be fake.
Investigation Findings
During the investigation, it was found that Bhattarai had issued the travel documents to the Tibetans, who had used them to travel to Germany. The German government had later discovered that these documents were fake and had sent the individuals back to Nepal.
The CIB’s investigation also revealed that each of the individuals had paid four hundred thousand rupees to obtain the travel documents and an additional amount to ensure their departure from Tribhuvan International Airport.
Charges Against Bhattarai
The CIB has charged Bhattarai with violating the Passport Act, 2019, which carries a penalty of two to five hundred thousand rupees or imprisonment for one to three years, or both.
Bhattarai has denied any involvement in the case, stating that his signature must have been misused by someone else.
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