Kathmandu (Nepal): In a further escalation of the political crackdown in Kathmandu, the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police arrested former Energy Minister and Nepali Congress leader Deepak Khadka on Sunday, March 29, 2026. CIB spokesperson Shiva Kumar Shrestha confirmed that Khadka was taken into custody following a formal request from the Department of Money Laundering Investigation. The arrest is linked to long-standing allegations that Khadka accepted illicit financial benefits in exchange for facilitating government licenses and contracts during his tenure as the Minister for Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation.
The investigation gained significant momentum following the “Gen Z” protests of September 2025. During the unrest, forensic evidence emerged—including images and videos of burnt banknote fragments—purportedly discovered at the residences of Khadka and former Prime Ministers Sher Bahadur Deuba and Pushpa Kamal Dahal. According to local reports, subsequent forensic laboratory tests confirmed these findings, providing a crucial link between high-ranking officials and the alleged destruction of unexplained wealth during the civil uprising.
Khadka’s detention comes less than 24 hours after the high-profile arrests of former Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak. While Oli and Lekhak face charges related to the violent suppression of the 2025 protests that left 76 people dead, Khadka’s case marks a shift toward financial accountability within the previous administration. The rapid series of arrests under Prime Minister Balendra Shah’s government has sent shockwaves through Nepal’s political establishment, with opposition parties labeling the moves as a “targeted campaign” of political vendetta.
