Nepal's Department of Money Laundering Investigation (DMLI) carried out searches on October 7, 2026, in an investigation linked to former Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana.
investigators seized documents and electronic devices. Nobody has been reported arrested or charged in the money-laundering case, and Rana has not been found guilty of anything.
A senior DMLI official confirmed that several homes were searched but would not name them all, saying that doing so could affect the investigation. The homes of Rana's brother Prabhu Shumsher Rana, and of Nabin Basnet, Nawaraj Thapaliya, Dipak Timalsina and Narayan Dahal are rumored to be few.
Government spokesperson Sasmit Pokharel called the search and property investigation a "regular process" carried out by government bodies within their authority.
Scrutiny of Rana's wealth is not new. A complaint about his assets was reportedly filed with DMLI on December 26, 2021. On February 13, 2022, 98 lawmakers registered an impeachment motion against him. In September 2022, a parliamentary committee recommended that the anti-corruption commission and DMLI investigate his assets. Those were allegations and recommendations, not findings.
On September 27, 2026, police took Rana from his home in Maharajgunj to a police office in Teku, saying he faced a security threat. He was released after about 10 to 12 hours, and no criminal case was announced against him. Investigators later began looking at the contacts of an intermediary, Inam Sapkota.
Under the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2064, complaints can be filed with the department. The law gives it powers over documents, evidence and property when there are reasonable grounds linked to an offence. Rules set out how searches and seizures must be recorded.
