Police on Friday released the CPN (Maoist Centre) vice-chair and former Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara, one of the suspects in a gold smuggling case, on a condition that he appears when summoned.

The Central Investigation Bureau released Mahara in the presence of his elder son Nirmal. Earlier today, the agency completed recording his statements at the district attorney office.

Joint Attorney Sandesh Shrestha, head of the Kathmandu District Attorney's Office, stated that Mahara’s release was based on his health condition.

“Mahara has been released under the condition of being available when summoned,” said Shrestha.

Mahara, arrested in Pakadi of Kapilvastu district, was flown to Kathmandu from Bhairahawa airport for investigation and later remanded to four days in custody by the Kathmandu District Court.

Citing his health condition, the court has allowed him to remain in hospital during the custody period, and subsequently, he was admitted to Norvic Hospital in Thapathali.

Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane had on Sunday ordered police to implement the inquiry commission’s report on a large-scale gold smuggling scam that implicated Mahara.

The commission, headed by former High Court chief judge Dilli Raj Acharya, had earlier submitted its report accusing the CIB of making deliberate efforts not to investigate Mahara, the then director general of the Department of Immigration Jhalak Ram Adhikari, and former Nepal Police chief and UML leader Sarbendra Khanal in the gold scam.

The commission submitted its report after studying the lapses in police investigation into the scam that involved the smuggling of 60kg gold by hiding it inside motorcycle brake shoes last year, and also into another scam wherein 9kg of gold was smuggled by concealing it inside electronic cigarettes in December 2022.

The District Attorney’s Office filed a case against Rahul, son of former Speaker Mahara, in October last year for his alleged role in smuggling 9kg of gold.

The CIB had taken Rahul into custody on August 30 last year for investigation. As per a government report, the father-son duo had been in regular contact with Chinese gold smugglers, with a total of 256 phone conversations between them.

Previously, police had inquired with senior Mahara about the smuggling after he was found to be in constant touch with Chinese smugglers. Though Mahara was a suspect, police didn’t record his statement in the presence of the government attorney as required by the law.