The Saptari police arrested Surendra Yadav, the suspended central treasurer of the Janamat Party, on charges of fraud and criminal betrayal on Sunday.

According to Superintendent of Police Dhakendra Khatiwada, Yadav was taken into custody following a request from the Lalitpur Police Range.

SP Khatiwada stated that the arrest was made pursuant to a warrant issued by the Lalitpur District Court, and preparations are underway to transfer Yadav to Lalitpur.

The case was registered based on a complaint filed by Janamat Party’s central spokesperson, Sharad Singh Yadav.

Surendra was suspended from the party in March for alleged financial irregularities and conspiring against the party and its chairperson.

Janamat Party has accused Surendra of collecting millions of rupees from over 60 members of the Non-Resident Madhesi Association, keeping the party in the dark. The funds were allegedly collected in coordination with former president of the association engineer Basanta Kumar Kushwaha and engineer Shambhunath Sah under the pretext of investment shares and levies.

The party’s disciplinary committee member-secretary, Anita Kumari Mandal, in a letter to Surendra, accused him, along with Kushwaha and Sah, of collecting funds and subsequently purchasing a house in Koteshwar, Kathmandu, operating a hotel, and investing in real estate and a school in Janakpur, among other activities. Mandal, in the letter, claimed that the party took the action after receiving multiple complaints regarding transactions involving them.

Surendra has also been accused of spending most of his time abroad, in the US and Qatar, neglecting party duties and failing to attend key meetings. The party further alleged that he repeatedly manipulated financial records.

The suspended treasurer, Yadav, accuses Chairman Raut of plotting to defame him.