Nepal panel to probe property, assets of politicians and officials

By Gopal Sharma

KATHMANDU, ‌April 16 (Reuters) - Nepal's ​new ​government, led by rapper-turned politician Balendra Shah, has set up a panel to investigate the ‌property and assets of past and present politicians ⁠and officials, a move aimed at controlling corruption in the Himalayan ‌nation.

Shah, 35, became prime minister ‌after his Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) scored a sweeping victory in the March 5 parliamentary election – the country's first ​vote after the anti-graft ‘Gen Z” protests last September.

During his three-year stint as mayor of Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital ⁠city, Shah gained popularity for his fight against corruption and reformist credentials.

Sasmit Pokhrel, ​a cabinet spokesperson, said the five-member panel would be headed by Rajendra Kumar Bhandari, a ​retired Supreme Court judge.

“An impartial investigation ‌will be carried out on the basis of evidence based on legal standards … Its ⁠report and recommendations will be implemented by concerned agencies of the government,” Pokhrel told reporters after a cabinet meeting late on ⁠Wednesday without mentioning the time frame given to the panel to ​complete work.

The probe is expected to cover hundreds of politicians and officials who held public offices after the popular movement that led to ‌the abolition of the 239-year-old monarchy in 2008, analysts said.

The three-year-old RSP had made ‌corruption control one of its major promises during the election ⁠and scored a comfortable ‌victory over the ​parties that had dominated politics in the country for decadessuffered.

(Reporting by Gopal Sharma; Editing by Lincoln ‌Feast.)

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