Dr. Sangita Kaushal Acquitted, Six Found Guilty in 3D Mammography Machine Procurement Corruption Case
June 16, Kathmandu – In a corruption case involving the purchase of a 3D mammography machine, a special court has convicted six individuals, sentencing them to imprisonment and fines. The court concluded that there was significant collusion, irregularities, and fabrication of false documents, revealing serious malfeasance in the public procurement process. On Monday, the bench comprising Special Court members Narayan Prasad Paudel and Umesh Koirala sentenced six individuals, including then-Director of the Management Division Dr. Shravan Kumar Thapa, to four months of imprisonment each.
The convicted include former Procurement Branch Chief Surendra Prasad Chaurasia, biomedical engineers Ashish Chauhan and Padma Mishra, Sanjay Kumar Sah, and Sundar Bhusal, the proprietor of Maxim Traders Incorporation Pvt. Ltd. The court found these defendants had engaged in planned collusion between departmental staff and the contracting company, and accordingly imposed penalties under the Corruption Control Act, 2059.
As per Section 8(1) of the Act, the employees received four months’ imprisonment along with compensation and fines. Due to delays in delivery, predetermined compensation amounting to NPR 3,834,723 was imposed; the court distributed this among the defendants, charging each a fine of NPR 547,817. They were also ordered to recover an equivalent amount and deposit it as revenue. Additionally, on charges of fabricating false documents under Section 19(2), each defendant received a further four months’ imprisonment and fines of NPR 20,000.
Similarly, Sundar Bhusal, found guilty as a ringleader, was sentenced to the same punishment with imprisonment and fines. Meanwhile, the court ordered all convicted parties to pay NPR 21,912 each as compensation to the Victim Relief Fund under the Crime Victim Protection Act, 2075.
On the other hand, eight individuals, including then-Director General of the Health Services Department Dr. Sangita Kaushal Mishra, were acquitted by the court. Others acquitted include former Director Dr. Vivek Kumar Lal, Chief Accounting Controller Bhuvan Prasad Kafle, Deepak Adhikari, Yadav Prasad Sapkota, Accounts Officer Shambhu Prasad Dhakal, Legal Officer Sita Ghimire, and Accountant Tilak Ram Dhakal. The court ruled that Dr. Mishra had only approved the specifications and payment orders based on documents and comments received from technical and procurement units, and there was insufficient evidence to prove malicious intent, leading to her acquittal.
