House panel directs government to suspend Ncell share transactions

KATHMANDU: The State Affairs and Good Governance Committee of the House of Representatives has instructed the Government of Nepal to make a recovery of tax that Ncell, the private telecommunications service provider in the country, owed to it.

A meeting of the Committee today issued directives to the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies. The meeting directed the government to not allow the transactions of Company shares until the Committee formed to investigate the matter about the sale of company shares submits the report.

Committee President Ramhari Khatiwada said the meeting asked the government for amending the Telecommunications Act and Regulations, making them compatible with time. In addition to this, the government has been directed to assess the capacity and business experiences of buyers during the sale and purchase of shares of big companies like the Ncell.

Similarly, the meeting decided to seek information regarding the Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA)’s response to the sale of Ncell share, directing the government to make necessary amendments to bring the Ncell under the government ownership.