Pokhara, April 6: Land publicly linked to Home Minister Sudhan Gurung is leased rather than owned, with allegations that rent has not been paid for the past five years.
According to local landowner Om Bahadur Gurung, the minister had leased 20 ropani of the Phewa lakeside land at an annual rent of Rs 200,000. The agreement allowed the minister to build a resort and tourism-related structures on the property.
Construction began but was left incomplete after disputes emerged with locals. The minister reportedly abandoned the project midway and has not returned since.
The landowner claims he received rent for only the first year. “It has been five to six years since the agreement. I was paid Rs 200,000 once, but nothing after that,” he said, adding that repeated attempts to contact the minister have failed.
The issue surfaced publicly after Pokhara Mayor Dhanraj Acharya stated that the minister had even indicated he would not obstruct bulldozing activities on the land while discussing lake mapping issues.
Efforts to reach Gurung for comment were unsuccessful. Meanwhile, the landowner has urged him to come forward, settle the dues, or cancel the agreement.
“By law, the rent should have been paid by now. He talks about governance and rule of law but has not honoured his own contract,” the landowner said. “He should either continue using the land properly or tear up the agreement.”
The lease agreement reportedly spans 15 years. While some structures were built, the project remains abandoned. Questions also remain over land registration, with indications that part of the land may be formally registered while other portions are held under informal usage rights.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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