The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the House of Representatives on Tuesday instructed the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to investigate irregularities and corruption worth billions of rupees in the construction of the Pokhara International Airport and take action against those found guilty.

After hours-long discussion and deliberations on Wednesday, the parliamentary committee, based on the report submitted by its subcommittee headed by Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Chairman Rajendra Lingden, endorsed the report and decided to forward it to the CIAA for further investigation along with a supplementary opinion from CPN-UML lawmakers Gokul Baskota and Tara Lama.

PAC Chairman Rishikesh Pokharel said the report has raised 15 fundamental questions that require thorough investigation. “We have decided to send the report to the CIAA including these questions as part of the official decision.”

The 12-member subcommittee finalised the draft report nearly 10 months after its formation. The report has unearthed irregularities and corruption in construction as well as in the tax exemptions given to construction companies. It says the corruption and the irregularities amount to around Rs14 billion at the current exchange rate.

The subcommittee has listed out corruption and irregularities in around a dozen areas. The report, citing the initial project report, suggested that the soil at the airport construction site was not suitable, so the runway’s elevation had to be increased.

Before giving instruction to the CIAA, PAC members engaged in a heated debate over the corruption at the airport. The subcommittee submitted the report to the PAC on April 18 and it was subsequently made public.

During the hours-long discussion and debate on Wednesday, lawmakers from Nepali Congress, CPN (Maoist Centre), Rastriya Swatantra Party, Rastriya Prajatantra Party, CPN (Unified Socialist), and independent lawmakers stood in favour of the Lingden report and demanded that it be forwarded to the CIAA. CPN-UML lawmakers, however, attempted to downplay the report and accused it of being motivated by political vendetta.

Lingden as well as RSP lawmaker, Manish Jha, expressed deep concern over the statement issued by China's CAMC Engineering Co Ltd published in state-owned newspapers, Gorkhapatra and The Rising Nepal on Tuesday.

Lingden said their study found significant misconduct in the contract process itself. “Our study has shown that there were major financial irregularities during the construction phase,” he said. “Some people have raised concerns without proper study, driven solely by self-interest. But we conducted our analysis based on facts and documents.”

“It is not our role to make decisions, but to instruct the relevant bodies to take action,” he clarified.

He expressed serious objection to the Chinese contractor’s notice published in the two dailies. “A construction company has responded to the study conducted by a sovereign parliament with a very undignified language,” he said. “They have given misleading information on the number of travelers passing through Pokhara. This is a serious matter.”

In its clarification statement published in the newspapers, the CAMC said, the issues mentioned in the report concerning it were “entirely inconsistent with the facts.”

“The report lacks professional research and objective analysis of the project’s full implementation process, which we find profoundly shocking and gravely concerning. As a professional and responsible international engineering contractor, we strictly complied with all legal and regulatory requirements of the Nepalese government throughout the bidding, contracting, and implementation phases of the Pokhara Regional International Airport Project.”

“We have fulfilled all obligations under the contractual documents and the implementation agreement signed by all parties, and maintained complete records of these processes,” said the Chinese contractor in its clarification published in the state-owned newspapers.

RSP lawmaker and committee member Jha, raising his concerns while participating in the discussion on the subcommittee report, said, “A national daily that runs on the taxes paid by the Nepali people should be accountable. We must ask the chief editor and editor for clarification on how this press release was published.” Jha also demanded clarification from both the Chinese contractor and the Gorkhapatra Corporation.

Nepali Congress lawmaker Arjun Narsingh KC claimed there was evidence of corruption from the start of the airport’s construction.

He pointed out that the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) had signed agreement to build the airport for $145 million, whereas an earlier JICA report had mentioned that a full-fledged airport in Pokhara could be built in two phases for $40-45 million. He questioned why that alternative was not considered. KC claimed that the authority later revised the $40-45 million estimate to $145 million.

The airport, which eventually cost $215.96 million, was inaugurated on January 1, 2023. Constructed with a $215.96 million soft loan from China’s EXIM Bank and built by a Chinese state-owned enterprise, the international airport has been struggling to attract foreign flights.

Speaking in the PAC on Wednesday, UML lawmaker Gokul Baskota claimed that the subcommittee report was incomplete. Baskota tabled a note and called for further investigation claiming that the Lingden report has not gone into the needed depth.

“The report reflects hard work, but some elements are missing,” said Baskota. Rather than trying to establish a preconceived idea, the investigation should try to understand what actually happened, he argued.

He noted that although decisions made by the CAAN board could have served as contextual references in the report, they were not included. “Those should have been taken into account. The Auditor General has also flagged some irregularities. The issue is how those irregularities are going to be addressed,” he said.

Baskota said the airport project began in 2014 and only became controversial in 2025, suggesting that it would be more appropriate to examine the entire timeline from 2014.

Another UML lawmaker Yogesh Bhattarai expressed serious dissatisfaction with the Lingden report and claimed it recommended actions based on personal grudges.

“Even now, Himalaya Airlines and Chinese aircraft are operating flights. When there is clear evidence that the airport is functional, how can the report still recommend action?” said Bhattarai.

He slammed the report for failing to name those responsible for making policy-level decisions on the airport and targeting certain individuals out of “personal resentment”.

“Those who approved the budget increase from $145 million to $216 million dollars are not named, but others have been singled out based on personal vendettas,” he said, demanding that the finance ministers concerned should also be investigated.

Following complaints of corruption in the airport project, the committee was formed on June 28 last year. It had lawmakers Arjun Narasingh KC, Gokul Prasad Baskota, Janardan Sharma, Tamang, Teju Lal Chaudhary, Deepak Giri, Dev Prasad Timilsina, Prem Ale Magar, Ram Krishna Yadav, Rukmani Rana Baraili and Lekh Nath Dahal as members.

Nepali Congress MP Rajendra KC demanded a clear breakdown of the cost escalation in the project and greater transparency.

“There must be clarity on how the cost increased from 145 million to 216 million dollars,” he said. “Both the Auditor General and the government must answer this question.”

He called for serious attention to the issues raised in the report, citing the example of an additional Rs330 million spent just to trim the Chhinne Danda ridge. KC stated that if the fuel storage infrastructure in Pokhara was built by the Nepal Oil Corporation but that cost was included in the airport’s construction budget, it would be corruption.

Ale Magar of the CPN (Unified Socialist) claimed that over Rs10 billion was misappropriated through negotiations during the construction of the airport.

He stated that only the flight procedure design from November 2022 was made available when requested, and that the Ministry of Finance did not provide tax-related documents. He questioned whether the Public Accounts Committee had become too weak.

“The airport, which was supposed to be built for $145 million, suddenly cost $216 million. That $71 million is blatant corruption,” he said, while describing the corruption in Pokhara as a “trailer” while the “full movie” would be seen at the Bhairahawa airport project.

CPN (Maoist Centre) leader and lawmaker Lekhnath Dahal said there should be no delay in further investigation and action on the corruption at Pokhara airport.