Several Nepali Congress and other opposition lawmakers have demanded an investigation into Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Rabi Lamichhane over his alleged involvement in the misuse of funds from a Pokhara-based cooperative firm.

“We demand an answer from Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal whether the government is ready to investigate the massive misuse of cooperative funds and Lamichhane’s alleged involvement,” Nepali Congress lawmaker Gagan Kumar Thapa, who is also the party’s general secretary, said at Monday’s meeting of the House of Representatives. “We urge the government to take the issue and the plight of victims of cooperative frauds seriously.”

Reports are pouring in from different parts of the country that billions of rupees of the general public have been embezzled by cooperative owners and management committees and the culprits have been absconding.

A complaint was registered at the District Police Office in Kaski last month against Lamichhane, accusing him of embezzling cooperative funds.

Lamichhane, a former television host and managing director of a television channel co-founded by Gitendra Babu (GB) Rai, has been accused of embezzling hundreds of millions of rupees in collusion with Rai from different cooperatives in Kaski, Chitwan and Butwal.

Rai, who was the chairman of the Gorkha Media Network, the mother company of the channel, is accused of illegally transferring Rs300 million from Kaski-based Surya Darshan Cooperative, Rs110.71 million from Chitwan-based Sahara Cooperative, and Rs 100.74 million from Supreme Cooperative in Butwal, without providing any collateral.

On Sunday, the swindled depositors of Surya Darshan submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Dahal in Pokhara and urged him to investigate Rai and probe the role of home minister Lamichhane in the scam.

Now the Nepali Congress has taken the issue seriously and voiced concerns at the Parliament meeting on Monday.

“No one, whether they are powerful, popular or new, should be exempted if they have made a mistake. Do we have the courage to acknowledge this or not? This is the question for the House. Should we advocate for the truth or not ? This is not a question for one section; it is about the integrity of the House. So the prime minister should give answers,” said Thapa.

“We have raised this issue seriously and we want a response from the prime minister, and this is also my request to the Speaker. Do not let this agenda fade away,” said Thapa. “We want to hear from the prime minister that the probe into the embezzlement of the cooperative funds will be impartial and free from any influence.”

The Congress has been raising its concerns over a conflict of interest arising from Lamichhane’s appointment as home minister, especially as Nepal Police that falls under the ministry’s jurisdiction is currently investigating his alleged involvement in embezzling cooperative deposits while serving at the Gorkha Media Network.

A probe committee launched by the Pokhara Metropolitan City found that over Rs1.35 billion in public deposits at Surya Darshan Cooperative in Pokhara was misappropriated.

The probe found that Lamichhane had obtained a loan of Rs10 million from the cooperative by creating a fake account. Lamichhane has vehemently denied the charge.

While the cooperatives regulations bar non-members from borrowing money, Lamichhane, who was neither a member nor a depositor of the cooperative, still managed to obtain the loan, the probe found.

Thapa stated that no one should be exempt from corruption cases, including those related to the fake Bhutanese refugee case, the illegal transfer of 10 ropani land of Bansbari Leather and Shoe Factory, the Teramocs scam, Ncell share transfer scam, and gold smuggling case, among others.

“We demand a fair and impartial investigation into the embezzlement of the cooperative funds,” said Thapa while targeting home minister Lamichhane.

“Not a single piece of evidence should be destroyed as police have the evidence of embezzlement of cooperative funds,” said Thapa. “The victims have handed over evidence to the police for further investigation.”

“How can we believe that those who were involved in the embezzlement of the funds will carry out fair and impartial investigation,” said Thapa while questioning the credibility and moral authority of Home Minister Lamichhane.

“That is why we need an answer from the prime minister.”

Thapa said he does not want superficial answers from the prime minister and they should come in a responsible manner.

He claimed that over 100 people including Lamichhane had opened fake accounts at Surya Darshan Cooperative and they embezzled over Rs1.45 billion.

But Ashok Kumar Chaudhary of the Rastriya Swatantra Party urged the Congress to accept Lamichhane as home minister.

“Lamichanne became the home minister after winning the trust, vote and confidence of the people,” he said. “The Congress should have the courage to accept him as home minister. He has restored people’s hope, and the Congress should focus on self-reflection rather than blaming others.”

Other Nepali Congress lawmakers like Dikpal Kumar Shahi and Pratima Gautam also urged a fair probe into Lamichhane’s alleged involvement in the cooperative scam while casting doubt over such fairness given Lamichhane’s leadership of home ministry.

“The victims of cooperatives are fed up with the state’s approach and no longer feel they will get justice under the current system,” said Gautam. She questioned how victims could believe they would get justice when the man heading the home ministry is implicated in embezzling cooperative funds.

Meanwhile, chairman of the Rastriya Janamorcha Chitra Bahadur KC issued a statement on Monday demanding that the home minister be sacked. “If Lamichhane continues as home minister, the ongoing investigation on the cooperative fraud will be affected,” KC said. “This will be an injustice to the victims of the cooperatives.”