Police have arrested Durga Prasai, the coordinator of the Nationality, Nationalism, Religion, Culture and Citizen Protection Mega Campaign, on charges of spreading misleading information against Nepal’s Election Commission.
Prasai had publicly alleged that a transaction of NPR 520 million had taken place with the Election Commission to grant official recognition to the faction emerging from the Nepali Congress’s special general convention. Police said he was arrested for disseminating false and misleading claims regarding the Commission’s decision to legitimize the special convention.
According to Kaski District Police, Prasai was arrested from the Airport Chowk area in Pokhara. Information Officer at the Kaski District Police Office, Hari Bahadur Basnet, confirmed the arrest. Basnet said preparations are underway to hand Prasai over to the Nepal Police Cyber Bureau for further investigation.
Prasai had claimed that the Election Commission received NPR 520 million in exchange for recognizing Gagan Thapa as the party president elected through the special general convention of the Nepali Congress.
Calling the claim baseless and misleading, the Election Commission had on Sunday formally requested the Cyber Bureau to investigate the matter. Based on the Commission’s complaint, police said they have taken Prasai into custody and are moving forward with the investigation.
Prasai, who leads the Nationality, Nationalism, Religion, Culture and Citizen Protection Mega Campaign, has previously been arrested and released multiple times in connection with cyber-related offenses.
Superintendent of Police Pawan Bhattarai of the Kathmandu District Police Range said Prasai is currently being brought to Kathmandu for further legal proceedings.
