Intro: Nepal’s SS has demanded an explanation over a controversial, decade-old Chinese aircraft deal causing massive financial losses.
KATHMANDU
Nepal’s government is under intense legal pressure regarding a controversial decade-old deal to purchase six Chinese aircraft.
The nation’s Supreme Court has issued a formal show-cause notice, demanding an explanation for a procurement process that has left the state-owned Nepal Airlines Corporation struggling with massive financial losses.
Between 2014 and 2018, Nepal acquired four Y12E planes and two MA60 turboprops using a mix of Chinese grants and loans totaling over 6 billion rupees. However, the investment quickly soured. Five of these planes have been grounded at Tribhuvan International Airport since 2020, gathering dust and depreciating in value, while a sixth aircraft was abandoned as scrap following a 2020 runway accident.
Experts and officials cite high fuel consumption, expensive spare parts, and poor performance for the grounding, which has turned these assets into a heavy financial burden. Public-interest activist Bhesh Raj Luintel filed a petition on June 25, alleging deep irregularities in the original decision-making process. The Supreme Court has now granted this case legal priority, ordering the government and anti-corruption bodies to explain why a thorough investigation has not yet been launched.
Petitioner Luintel is demanding a transparent, time-bound probe into all officials and consultants involved. Despite previous attempts to lease the idle fleet, no bids were received. With the public demanding accountability for the lost billions, the court’s intervention marks a critical turning point in determining who will ultimately answer for this ill-fated aviation project.
