Nepal’s former energy minister arrested in money laundering probe

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Nepal’s former energy minister Deepak Khadka was arrested on Sunday as part of an investigation into money laundering, police said.

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The announcement came a day after ex-prime minister KP Sharma Oli and former home minister Ramesh Lekhak were arrested over their alleged roles in a deadly crackdown on anti-corruption protesters in September.

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Khadka “was arrested this morning in a case relating to money laundering”, Shiva Kumar Shrestha, spokesman for the Central Investigation Bureau, told AFP.

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Nepal’s Department of Money Laundering Investigation will oversee the probe, he said.

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Newly appointed Home Affairs Minister wrote on Facebook that Khadka had been “detained today in connection with the investigation of the money recovered from his residence during the 9 September protest”.

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The youth-led uprising that month began over a brief social media ban but grew to include longstanding frustration over corruption and economic hardship.

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At least 76 people were killed in a crackdown on September 8 and 9, according to an inquiry commission into the violence.

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Demonstrators set fire to the parliament building and government offices, and eventually brought down Oli’s administration.

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Khadka’s residence was set ablaze, and videos went viral showing protesters throwing cash found in his home up into the air.

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Nepalis held elections this month that the Rastriya Swatantra Party won by a landslide.

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Its leader, rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah, formally took office as prime minister on Friday.

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The government unveiled an ambitious 100-point agenda for governance reform on Saturday, including a plan to form an investigation committee to look into the assets of politicians and high-ranking state employees.

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The same day, Oli and Lekhak were arrested. A government-backed inquiry commission had previously recommended that Oli and other officials be prosecuted for neglect after not acting to stop security forces from firing on protestors.

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Oli and Lekhak have denied ordering forces to open fire on protesters.

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pm/mjw

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