Himal Press 
Maoist Center lawmaker Lekhnath Dahal
KATHMANDU: CPN-UML lawmakers obstructed the proceedings at the House of Representatives on Friday after CPN (Maoist Center) lawmaker Lekhnath Dahal said 10 kg of gold was misappropriated while offering a golden Jalahari at the Pashupatinath Temple.
The Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) had offered the Jalahari to the temple when UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli was leading the government. Dahal claimed that instead of gold, copper had been used in the Jalahari.
The UML lawmakers immediately expressed objection to Dahal’s statement. UML Chief Whip Padam Giri said the House meeting would not proceed until the allegations made by a leader of the ruling party against the leader of the opposition party were resolved. Likewise, UML’s deputy leader in the parliament, Subash Nembang, said the party would not participate in the House proceedings until the allegations were resolved. He emphasized the need to uncover the truth and challenged the ruling parties to prove that the Jalahari was not made of gold. “The matter should be resolved once and for all,” he added.
Interestingly, the 59th annual report of the Office of the Auditor General states that 10.96 kg of the gold procured to make the Jalahari had gone missing.
PADT had procured 103.773 kg of gold from the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) to make the Jalahari. Additionally, 2.89 kg of copper, 1.249 kg of silver, and 12.75 kg of zinc were mixed with the gold. The report states that the Jalahari was made using 96.51 kilograms of gold, while the remaining 10.967 kg was intended for making a ring on the Jalahari. However, since the ring was not made, the OAG’s report concluded that 10.967 kg of gold was missing.
Efforts are underway to resolve the statement and resume House proceedings.
