The Supreme Court (SC) has reversed the decision made by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to initiate an investigation into Kunda Dixit and Kanak Mani Dixit, the proprietors of Madan Puraskar Pustakalaya and Himal Media. In a ruling issued by a division bench comprising Justices Kumar Chudal and Saranga Subedi, the SC overturned the directive of the Revenue Investigation Department to probe the Dixit duo and prohibited the Land Reform Office from proceeding with the process of land confiscation against Madan Puraskar Pustakalaya.
Subsequent to the CIAA's instructions, both the Revenue Investigation Department and the Land Reform Office had initiated investigations into the Dixit family and Madan Puraskar Pustakalaya. Responding to three distinct writ petitions, the SC ruled in favor of the Dixit family, effectively halting the ongoing investigations and land confiscation process.
Despite this, the contempt case initiated by Shanta Dixit against former CIAA Chief Commissioner Lokman Singh Karki and then Senior Superintendent of Police Yogeshwar Romkhami has been rejected. The case stemmed from allegations of political vendetta, with Karki allegedly directing the Revenue Investigation Department to probe the Dixit family based on claims that Madan Puraskar Pustakalaya held more land than legally permitted.
Starting from November 2015, Karki had issued directives to various state agencies to investigate the Dixit family. The CIAA had also detained Kanak Mani Dixit, who served as the chairman of Sajha Yatayat at the time. However, he was released from custody following a habeas corpus order issued by the SC.
In light of the SC's decision, the attempts by authorities to investigate allegations of revenue irregularities against the Dixit family have been thwarted. The CIAA's efforts to pursue a case of revenue irregularities and the Land Reforms Office's endeavor to seize land belonging to Madan Puraskar Pustakalaya, both on the grounds of land ownership exceeding legal limits, have been nullified by the SC's ruling.
