The Commission formed by the government to investigate and resolve cases related to usury has effectively handled 5,155 out of the 28,000 received complaints, according to Uttamraj Subedi, a Commission member and Additional Inspector General of Police. Since its inception, the Commission has facilitated the return of 218 bigha 10 kattha 7 dhur (793) to victims from usurious lenders through reconciliation.
In their study, the Commission found documented transactions exceeding Rs 5.857 billion between victims and loan sharks. The lenders asserted a pending recovery of over Rs 1.62 billion from victims. Notably, a consensus settlement between the parties resolved transactions totaling over Rs 1.72 billion, as disclosed by the Commission.
Victims’ applications were collected from April 30 to May 28, with 21,552 complaints registered from eight districts in Madhesh Province and 1,862 from Nawalparashi Paschim. Gauri Bahadur Karki, the Commission Chairperson, confirmed that the Commission submitted its report to the Prime Minister last Tuesday. Karki added that among the 39 districts, 29 reported cases, both registered and resolved, indicating that 39 districts had no usury problems.
To tackle issues related to loan-sharking, the government established a three-member high-powered Commission, and the corresponding law was passed and enforced by the Parliament. The Commission’s dedicated efforts underscore a commitment to safeguarding vulnerable individuals from usurious practices.