Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Nepal government has designated the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of the Nepal Police to lead the investigation into the smuggling of 100 kg of gold through the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) Customs.
The decision was made following discussions held by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Purna Bahadur Khadka, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Attorney General Din Mani Pokharel, Inspector General of Nepal Police Basanta Bahadur Kunwar, CIB Chief Kiran Bajracharya, and Director General of the Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) Navaraj Dhungana, along with other senior government officials on Thursday.
During the meeting, participants suggested that since the initial phase of the investigation had already been completed by the DRI, it would be appropriate to transfer the case to CIB to investigate it under organized crime and cross-border crime offences.
CIB, however, has not received the formal directive to proceed with the investigation yet, according to police officials.
Earier, Inspector General Kunwar had requested Home Minister Shrestha to assign the police to investigate the case, given its connections to organized crime. Shrestha subsequently presented the proposal to Prime Minister Dahal.
The government has faced criticism for not assigning the case to CIB, with concerns that crucial evidence may be compromised if the police are not involved in the investigation.
Currently, a total of 18 individuals have been arrested and are under investigation for their involvement in the case.
A team of DRI had intercepted a taxi carrying 66 boxes of motorcycle brake shoes imported from Hong Kong immediately after the consignment left the cargo complex of TIA on July 19. According to officials, the boxes contain gold molded into brake shoes. The boxes have been sent to the Minting Division of the Nepal Rastra Bank for measurement and verification.
