RASUWA, Oct 17: Nepali Congress (NC) has fielded Man Bahadur Tamang, who was arrested for his alleged involvement in an 88-kg gold smuggling case, as a candidate for the upcoming provincial election under the Proportional Representation (PR) system.
Tamang is also the chairman of Nepal-China Kerung Trade Association and has been involved in bilateral trade. He has been on the 'watch list' of the police for the past three years.
Poisonous legacy
According to police, along with trade, Tamang is also involved in smuggling of illegal items from and to China and India. His criminal activities include smuggling of red sandalwood to China from India, smuggling illicit gold from China to India, and smuggling ancient statues from Nepal to China among others, police said.
“Tamang has been involved in illegal activities for long. However, he is very cunning. Hence walking free due to the in lack of concrete evidence,” said a policeman.
In September, the Metropolitan Police Crime Division (MTCD) had busted 'an international gold smuggling racket' from the capital in what officials described as one of the largest seizures of the illegally held precious yellow metal. Tamang is one of the suspects.