KATHMANDU — The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed all district administration offices to activate district-level mechanisms for registering complaints related to meter-interest (usury) cases.
A circular issued to all 77 district administration offices instructs them to form a committee led by the assistant chief district officer. The mechanism will also include a DSP or inspector from the District Police Office and a representative from the government attorney’s office.
The government had previously formed three separate commissions to investigate unfair lending and meter-interest practices. After the tenure of those commissions ended, the registration and processing of complaints had come to a halt.
To restart the process, Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal has instructed the ministry and its subordinate bodies, including district police offices, to immediately activate district-level mechanisms.
Among the three commissions formed earlier, the most recent three-member inquiry commission was chaired by Baburam Regmi, with Bharat Bahadur Bohara and Badri Prasad Bhattarai serving as members. The Regmi-led commission was formed on Falgun 26, 2081, and began work on Chaitra 13.
According to the Regmi Commission, a total of 41,409 complaints from 43 districts had been registered as of Asar 12, 2082. Of these, 6,393 complaints have been settled, while 35,016 complaints remain pending.
On Shrawan 12, 2080, the federal parliament amended the Criminal Code, 2074 by adding Section 249 ‘Ka’, legally defining meter-interest transactions as a criminal offense.
