Kathmandu, Jan. 6: The Commission for Investigation of the Abuse of Authority (CIAA) today filed cases against two of the 22 government officials detained since the past five months on corruption charges. They were arrested after the CIAA found them to be maintaining an unusually high standard of living not appropriate with the post they were holding.

Those officials who will now be presented at the Special Court on corruption charges are Umesh Kumar Regmi of the Internal Revenue Office, Area No. 1 and Arjun Thapa of Department of Revenue Investigation.

Officials of the constitutional anti-corruption body had presented cases before the Court on Friday but, because the bench was busy that day, the CIAA had to wait till Monday. With the two new suits, cases have already been filed against more than a dozen officials of the Revenue Department.

According to the CIAA statement, accused Umesh Kumar Regmi illegally amassed property worth Rs. 16.4 million while he was a non-gazetted employee at Internal Revenue Office. “Out of the property unearthed, he could prove the sources for only Rs. 2.1 million worth of property. The rest was earned through illegal means by abusing his authority, ” the CIAA said.

In its writ against Regmi, the CIAA has demanded with the Court maximum sentence and confiscation of all illegally earned assets and property under the Anti-Corruptrion Act 2059.

Regmi was also found to have deposited illegally earned money in various banks in the accounts of his wife and in-laws. The CIAA has also demanded that their accounts be seized.

Another non-gazetted government official, Arjun Thapa, was found to have amassed assets and property worth Rs. 16 million. He was unable to prove how he earned Rs. 11.7 million. Likewise, the CIAA has demanded, the confiscation of all illegally amassed wealth and a fine equal to that amount as well as maximum sentence.

Thapa was found to have kept the money in the account of his father and wife. The CIAA has demanded that their accounts be seized.

The general people say the Court should not release the accused on small bail until the verdict has been given. “If the court continues to release the accused on small bail like it did in the case of an ex-minister, they could influence the court proceedings and weaken the fight against corruption,” a staff at Transparency International said.