Nepal to Declare Meter Byaj a Serious Economic Crime

The government of Nepal and the ‘Meter Byaj Against Farmers-Laborers Movement’ have reached a six-point agreement to resolve the meter byaj issue in the long term.

The draft agreement includes declaring meter byaj a serious economic crime, enacting a special law, establishing a special tribunal related to meter byaj, and suspending the movement.

Key Provisions

According to the draft, the Council of Ministers will declare the meter byaj system a serious economic crime. In addition, the process of canceling fake documents, including registration (chinuv) passes and mandatory checks related to meter byaj, will be initiated.

To create a legal basis for this, the process of enacting a special law to control meter byaj crimes will be started. The government has proposed to prepare a draft of the special law within three months.

The law will include provisions to declare meter byaj-related transactions illegal, provide compensation to victims, return seized land, bring perpetrators under the law, and establish a special tribunal related to meter byaj.

The draft also includes provisions for investigating meter byaj-related issues, forensic testing of fake documents, investigating property laundering, reviewing cases pending in court, and providing free legal assistance to victims.

Implementation and Next Steps

To implement the agreement, a high-level dialogue committee will be formed, consisting of government representatives, independent experts, and movement representatives, as per the decision of the Council of Ministers. It is proposed to form a special task force within seven days.

The task force will include joint secretaries from various ministries, the Nepal Police, the Office of the Attorney General, independent experts, and three representatives from the movement.

According to the draft, the government will implement all the points of the agreement, and in return, the Meter Byaj Against Farmers-Laborers Movement will suspend the justice march that started from Janakpurdham.

Both parties are preparing to finalize the draft and sign the agreement in a decisive meeting today at 9 am.