Loan shark victims get back more than 218 bigha of land

Kathmandu, Dec. 25:The government’s initiatives and actions have now moved towards permanently resolving the cases related to the problems of loan sharking.

The Commission formed to address loan-sharking problems in April this year submitted its report to the government on December 12. 

Uttamraj Subedi, one of the members of the Commission and also the Additional Inspector General of Police, shared that since the formation of the Commission, a total of 218 bigha, 10 kattha and 7 dhur (147.6 hectares) of land has been returned to the loan shark victims from their usurious lenders through reconciliation.

The Commission had collected applications from the victims from April 30 to May 28, after it formally began its work from April 9. Altogether 21,552 complaints were lodged from eight districts in Madhes Province while 1,862 complaints were filed from Nawalparasi West. 

Commission Chairman Gauri Bahadur Karki said there was no problem of usury in 39 districts.

The government had formed a three-member high-powered Commission to address the issues of loan sharking. The Parliament also had passed the law regarding this and the law has been enforced as well.

The alleged loan sharks who had initially asked for as much as Rs 7.62 billion, have settled for only Rs 1.72 billion during negotiations facilitated by the Commission.

Over 5,000 cases resolved

According to the Commission, it settled as many as 5,188 complaints of 27,582 through compromise deals. Most complaints originated in eight districts of the Madhes, and the Commission has settled most of these complaints through compromise.

It could settle as many as 3,689 complaints through compromise. As many as 643 complaints were settled in Bara alone, the highest in a district.

Most lenders not only agreed to settle for lower amounts than mentioned in the mortgage documents but also to return the lands the victims claimed were unjustifiably seized by inflating the loan amounts.

According to the Commission, the total loan amount mentioned in the personal mortgage documents in its possession is Rs. 5.57 billion. As a part of the settlement, the lenders also agreed to return over 218 bighas (147.6 hectares) of land which was allegedly seized by artificially inflating loan amounts to the borrowers.

The Commission had little time to settle all the complaints, given the significantly high number, and in many cases, lenders have refused to resolve disputes through compromise.

The Commission suggested the government authorises concerned chief district officers to continue settling disputes through compromise decrees.

Bill criminalises loan sharking 

The government, in  May, introduced an ordinance criminalising the practice of loan sharking, which greatly helped the Commission settle disputes through compromise between the two sides.

When the ordinance was in force, the Commission warned the lenders that they could be prosecuted if they didn’t opt for a compromise.

“As a result, many loan sharks had agreed to settle disputes by withdrawing court cases and promised to return the lands they had seized from borrowers,” Karki said.

The government had formed the Commission in April and introduced the ordinance after loan shark victims protested in Kathmandu for several days demanding justice. The Parliament in July passed a new bill criminalising loan sharking.

Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, Joint Secretary and Spokesperson for the Ministry of Home Affairs said that they would implement the report received from the Commission. 

Hundreds of cases to be settled 

Meanwhile, our District Correspondent Bom Lal Giri from Nawalparasi East stated that 21 complaints were filed in the district administration office during the period.

Of the 21 complaints, four were settled in compromise. However, the victim complained that the agreement was not implemented. On the contrary, those who are called perpetrators have gone to court against the victims and the struggle committee. Maya Bhandari, one of the said loan sharks, has filed a case against Goma Ghimire, the former president of the Struggle Committee, and Hemraj Dahal, the current president of the Loan Sharking Struggle Committee, for defaming her. 

According to Yadav Parajuli, head of the litigation branch of the district administration office, seven cases are pending in the district court. Because the perpetrators are strong in evidence, there is no situation for the victims to go to court. Chief District Officer Kalpana Shrestha said that due to a lack of sufficient evidence, the alleged perpetrators could not be arrested as per the complaints registered.

Likewise, in Bara, under the unfair transaction, the district administration office has settled 654 cases out of 3,322 total cases and succeeded in returning Rs. 126 million to the victims. According to our district correspondent Shiva Shanker Mishra, in the district, the commission members have succeeded in returning 20 Bigaha, 16 kattha and 10 dhur land of the victims in their registration. Non-gazetted officer Sanoj Kumar Mahoto of the litigation branch of the DAO said that 1736 cases are yet to be settled and 1,586 cases are under the process of settlement through discussions.