AN OVERVIEW OF THE MEASURES TO COMBAT ECONOMIC CRIMEINCLUDING MONEY LAUNDERING IN THE CONTEXT OF NEPAL
Suryanath Prakash Adhikari*
I. INTRODUCTION
The impact of globalization in the economic and information technology field has brought all the nationsof the world together. There is a direct impact of good and bad happening in one part of the world to anotherpart. This interdependent system has enabled the countries to share the profits of globalization as well as
distribute the suffering. The dark side of globalization is that there are many less crimes of a local nature.
Most of the crimes are committed by nexuses of criminals residing in different parts of the word. The
attempt of any single country to punish them is almost impossible. It is difficult to catch the big fish in thenet. Only one part of the gang may be held responsible but the criminal activities move smoothly. Thus, it isnecessary to strengthen the links between countries to tackle crimes of an international nature.
This paper is intended to highlight the measures to combat economic crime, including money laundering,in the context of Nepal. This will enable the course participants to have a general look into the criminal
justice system of Nepal and measures under the system to combat economic crime.

II. WHAT ARE ECONOMIC CRIMES?
Acquiring easy money is one of the important objectives that induce a person to act in his life in different
ways than the socially accepted norms. Where the acts accord with accepted social norms and the law
permits them there is encouragement from all sides to make good money from good activities. When theactivities are outside the accepted social norms, the law tries to prevent them, and then the activities areillegal and ultimately a crime. There are various motivating factors for one to commit crime. Those factors
may be classified in various ways. Now it is suffice to say that the main motivating factor of crimes fromwhich one wants to receive money, are regarded as financial crime. A financial criminal not only attempts toaccumulate money from illegal sources. It is threatening to the world economic order and creates a hurdle
for national development. In Nepal financial crimes, especially corruption and money laundering have been
adversely affecting national development.
Financial crimes are contributing to the degradation of social norms. This crime causes further chaos anddisorder in society by creating wider gaps between the hard money earners and easy money earners.
From the very beginning of the development of the Kingdom of Nepal as a nation state, financial crimes
were regarded as the most heinous crimes. The great king Prithwinarayan Shaha who unified the Kingdom
declared that the bribe takers and bribe givers are the greatest enemy of the nation and they deserve thedeath penalty.
Broadly speaking crimes committed with the motive of getting money may be classified as financial
crimes. In addition, the socio-economic impact of the crime is also taken into consideration for suchclassification. Keeping in mind the socio-economic effect of the crime the following crimes are regarded as
the most serious financial crimes. The foregoing paragraphs discuss in detail these crimes and measurestaken to combat them.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Corruption
Fraud
Tax Evasion
Counterfeiting
Trafficking of Human Beings
Drugs Trafficking
Money Laundering* District Government Attorney, District Government Attorney’s Office, Kathmandu, Nepal.

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III. CORRUPTION
Corruption has been regarded as a heinous crime in Nepal for a very long time. But the problem ofcorruption is still rampant in the Kingdom. Various counter corruption measures are being implemented in
the Kingdom. The framers of the Constitution were aware of the problem and the Constitution of theKingdom of Nepal, 1990 has established a Constitutional Commission (Commission for Investigation of
Abuse of Authority) to investigate and prosecute corruption and misuse of authority. The King, on therecommendation of the Constitutional Council, appoints the Chief Commissioner and other Commissioners
and their tenure is fixed for six years. The Commission independently discharges the functions ofinvestigation and prosecution of corruption cases filed by the public officials.
In addition to the constitutional status of the Commission the anti-corruption law was revamped in 2002
to make the Commission able to tackle the problem in the context of rampant corruption in the Kingdom.
The Prevention of Corruption Act, 2002 has criminalized various activities where there is illegal benefit
taken by a public official in the course of exercising his authority. It has further classified the crimes on the
ground of financial benefit. One main change brought to the existing system by the new act is theestablishment of a crime of corruption on the basis of accumulation of property or high expenses that is notin consonance with the known source of income of a public officer.
In the same way the Government has been committed to expedite corruption cases and it was felt that it
was difficult to cope with the problem with the existing legal framework. Thus a special judicial tribunal has
been established under the authority of the Special Court Act, 2002. It was established one and half years
ago. It tries the cases of corruption committed throughout the Kingdom. Direct appeal lies in the Supreme
Court against the decision of the special court. There are three members all of whom are designated fromamongst the sitting judges of the Court of Appeal. The speed of trial of cases and rate of conviction in thosecases is satisfactory and very high in comparison to the prosecution of other criminal cases. The functioningof the cases is represented in the following table.

The Statistical Presentation of the Cases Tried by
the Corruption Special Court1
Registered Cases

Disposal

Fully Convicted

Acquitted

Partially Convicted

Registered Pending Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number

363

216

147

40.41

113

76.87

23

1.85

11

Percent
7.48

Total Convictions
Number Percent
1.34

84.35

The conviction rate of 84.35 percent is most satisfactory in the Nepalese criminal justice administration
system. It is now necessary to undertake detailed research and find out what factors are responsible for suchsuccess. If those factors are verifiable they may be applied to other criminal cases too. It is further necessary
to collect data on the ratio of convictions of the Special Court upheld or quashed by the Supreme Court. And
find out the reasons for quashing the convictions and improve the law and procedures to strengthen the
weakness in the system expressed by the Supreme Court.

IV. FRAUD
Fraud represents a very old traditional economic crime. In Nepal Muluki Ain defined it as a crime fromthe very beginning. In fraud the element of deception is included. The injured party is misrepresented by thecriminal intention of the culprit to get illegal financial benefit. Under ordinary Nepalese law one who
commits fraud is punished by imprisonment for up to five years and a fine equal to the amount gained fromthe fraudulent act2. In addition to these traditional fraudulent activities fraud in connection with foreign
employment and bank fraud are also common in the Kingdom of Nepal. Fraud committed in the name ofparamedical membership is also common in Nepal. This scheme is punished under the ordinary law against
fraud. Some employment agencies, or individuals, defraud their customers by charging them a fee in returnfor foreign employment that never materializes or employment with wages that are lower than promised.
1 Yuvaraj Subedi, The Success and Failure of CIAA Cases , Kanoon ( Nepali Bi-monthly Legal Journal) Vol. 45, Lawyer’s Club
Kathmandu, p.49.
2 No. 3 of the Chapter on Fraud of the Muluki Ain.

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RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No.67

The Foreign Employment Act, 1998 prescribes punishment for such fraudulent activities. In such cases theperpetrator will be punished by a fine of at least fifty thousand Rupees but not exceeding Rupees two lakh
and a term of imprisonment of at least one year but not exceeding five years. And the victimized person isreimbursed the expenses made in connection with the foreign employment.

V. TAX EVASION
Payment of tax imposed by the prevailing law and the procedure prescribed by the same is one of thefundamental duties of a citizen. Similarly the state has power to tax the transactions within the territory of
the state and non-citizens are also subject to tax in a state other than their nationality. There are two
methods of lowering the tax liability of a person. First is the application of the rules, which lower the tax
liability of the person among the different methods of calculating the tax payable. There may be a difference
in interpretation of law between the taxpayer and the tax authorities. In this situation the difference issolved by the judicial interpretation of the case. In case of high liability found by the judiciary, there ismonetary compensation only to the state revenue. Where a person intentionally uses different methods fortax evasion the consequences are serious. It causes adverse effects on the economy because the state may
not be in position to implement the desired activities due to a shortfall of revenue. Similarly tax evasion
prompts money laundering. The tax evaders employ money-laundering procedures to bring the black money
back in the system. Thus the taxing statutes employ stringent measures on tax evasion and the person is
subject to criminal liability. In Nepal the important taxing statutes are the Income Tax Act, 2002, the Excise
Duties Act, 2002; and the Value Added Tax Act, 1993. These acts have made stringent provisions for tax
evasion but there are few cases initiated on the grounds of tax evasion.

VI. COUNTERFEITING
Coins are not counterfeited in Nepal; although it has been reported that there is counterfeiting of Nepali
banknotes. Similarly the Indian Rupee and US dollar are other foreign currencies that are counterfeited. The
Nepalese law addressed this problem from its early period and it has criminalized illegal minting ofgovernment coins. The chapter on Counterfeiting in the Muluki Ain defines the crime and prescribes
punishment for that crime. A person engaged in counterfeiting of banknotes or coins shall be punished by aterm of imprisonment of ten years and fine of an equal amount of the forged notes or coins. This provision isvery sparingly used because there are few occurrences of this type of offence. And it has not posed a serious
danger. Another type of counterfeiting defined by the law is counterfeiting of government stamps. To thebest of my knowledge there is no need to apply this provision because there have been no reports of thiscrime being committed.

VII. TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS
Trafficking in human beings, especially of women and children, is the most heinous insult to the humancivilization. In all civilized society this act is highly condemned. In this era of globalization the movement of
human beings has increased rapidly, basically in search of better economic opportunities. The increased
mobility of individuals has facilitated the trafficking of women and children who are vulnerable. Although
there is in-country trafficking of women and children in the Kingdom, Nepal is regarded as a source country
and India and Arab countries are receiving countries in the course of trafficking. Due to an open border with
the neighbouring country of India, there is no verified data on the exact number of people trafficked. The
main method of trafficking used is in the name of employment. The agent pretends that they are going toarrange lawful employment with better pay. The victim doesn’t know they are being trafficked until he/shereaches the destination place of trafficking. In such circumstances it is very difficult to rescue the victim
from Nepal without the help and co-operation of the host country. Another common method is pseudomarriage. In this case the trafficking agent wins the affection of the victim first. Then proposes marriage andgets married with the victim secretly without fulfilment of legal formalities and customary proceedings.
After marriage he takes his wife out of the country and sells her when the situation is appropriate. It has
recently been discovered that a substantial number of Nepalese children are illegally forced to work in Indian
circus industries. They are deprived from their guardian and taken to the circus operators. They are notallowed to see their parents and denied basic needs and work in harsh conditions. With the help of an Indian
NGO some of them have been rescued recently.
The legal framework against trafficking is very stringent in Nepal. A chapter on Muluki Ain is devoted to218

128TH INTERNATIONAL TRAINING COURSEPARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

the fight against the trafficking of human beings. The Chapter on Trafficking of Human Beings prohibits
trafficking of human beings outside the country and prohibits movement of people within the country for the
purpose of trafficking. It has prescribed punishment of imprisonment for a term of twenty years for the saleof a person and ten years imprisonment for attempted sale. This general law has been found inadequate totackle the problem of trafficking and a special act The Trafficking of Human Beings (Control) Act, 1980 has
been enacted.
The Trafficking of Human Beings (Control) Act, 1980 has brought some fundamental changes in the legal
regime against trafficking. The important feature is the shifting of the onus of proof to the accused personfrom the prosecution side. When a person is accused of trafficking a person or a person is found taking awoman outside the Kingdom the person has to prove that he is innocent. The Act has recognized theinternational nature of trafficking of human beings and given the Act extra-territorial effect. It states any act,
defined as a crime under the Act, if committed outside the Kingdom shall be punishable and the act will bedeemed to have been committed within the Kingdom. The other characteristic of the Act is that when avictim claims that someone has sold her, her statement is to be registered immediately and authenticated by
the District Court. It has made stringent provisions for punishment too. A person who sells an individual ispunished by imprisonment for a term of ten to twenty years. A person who takes an individual outside theKingdom for the purpose of sale is subject to imprisonment for a term of five to ten years. One who
forcefully engages a woman in prostitution is punished by imprisonment for a term of ten to fifteen years. An
accomplice or someone who attempts trafficking in human beings is punished by imprisonment for a term of
up to five years. This Act unfortunately has been found to not sufficiently address the problems of trafficking
and a new bill to replace it was tabled in Parliament and was in the committee stage of discussion. Due to thedissolution of Parliament the proposed bill has not been enacted. It is hoped that this will happen when theHouse is revived after a general election.

Cases of Trafficking in Human Beings Heard by Trial Courts
During the Last Four Years3
Fiscal Year

Total Number of Cases
Of the Of the year
previous
year

Number Disposed of

Total

Conviction

PartialAcquittal
Conviction

Pending

Rate ofconviction
(%)

Total

56/57

192

129

321

66

49

51

166

155

39.76

57/58

144

89

244

55

36

43

134

110

41.04

58/59

110

26

136

29

17

26

72

64

40.28

59/60

64

69

133

22

10

18

50

83

44.00

The above table shows the comparative statistics of cases tried by the trial courts in the case of
trafficking in human beings. It shows that the rate of conviction is increasing. In the year 56/57 theconviction rate was 39.76% and the rate of conviction in the year 59/60 was 44.00%. The other positive signis that the number of cases is surprisingly decreasing. There were 129 registered cases in the year 56/57
and only 89, 26 and 69 respectively in the years 57/58, 58/59 and 59/60. Increasing the rate of conviction andlowering the rate of commission of crime are positive signs for both preventive as well as punitive
approaches of criminological thought. But the number of cases and their analysis only are not enough torepresent the true social picture. Unless other empirical research shows that the commission of crime hasreally been decreasing we should view their these figures with doubt. There is enough room to see whycases of trafficking have not been registered and prosecuted.

VIII. DRUG TRAFFICKING
The problem of drug abuse and trafficking is not of recent origin. Only the gravity of the problem has
been felt more in recent times due to many factors, particularly drug trafficking with an international link
and illicit production.4 The adverse effects of drug addiction have caused degradation of a new generation in
3 Annual Report of the Attorney General of the Kingdom of Nepal, 2059/60.
4 S.V. Joga Rao, Drug Addiction and Penal Policy, 34 JILI, 1992 P 275.

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one way and in another way the fatal disease HIV-AIDS has been transferred from one drug abuser toanother through the sharing of needles. In the international area the problem was felt in the early 1900s.
The evil effects of narcotic drugs in Nepal have a direct link to the hippies. The hippies entered Nepal as
tourists in the 1970s and Nepal’s young generation came into contact with them and they learned the habitof drug addiction. The problems of drug addiction caused national concern and a severe penal measure to
curb the evil was necessary. The Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, 2033 was enacted for the purpose of fighting
drug abuse and trafficking. The adverse effects of drug addiction opened and widened the market of suchdrugs. Naturally, illicit production and trafficking was needed to fulfil the demand of the market. To supply
the market international smugglers became active and Nepal, among other countries, was seriously
concerned to curb such activities. Among other measures the revision of previous penal policy also became
necessary to curb the evil. For that purpose Nepal has also changed its penal policy through threeamendments of that Act.
The Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, 2033 (1976) is the fundamental law against the trafficking and misuseof narcotic drugs. This Act was the first attempt to control narcotic drugs; before the Act there was no
specific law dealing with the subject. The Intoxicating Substance Act, 1917 was in effect but it was notdirectly related to narcotic drugs. The Act has extra-territorial and stringent provisions of punishment. The
Act has been amended three times to tackle the changing situation. The scheme of penalties under the Act
is presented in the following table.

Scheme of Penalties under the Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act
Nature of

Penal

Narcotic Drug

SectionMarijuana

14(1)(a)Consumption of marijuana

Imprisonment up to one month or fine up to two

14(1)(b)Farming of marijuana up to 25

Imprisonment up to three months and fine up to threeplantsthousand Rupees

Prohibited Act

Punishment

thousand Rupees

14(1)(c)Farming of marijuana more than 25 Imprisonment up to three years and fine up to twenty
plantsfive thousand Rupees but not less than five thousand
Rupees14(1)(d)Production, preparation, sale and14(1)(d)(1) purchase, import-export andImprisonment up to three months and fine up to three
thousand Rupees

storage of marijuana up to 50 grams
14(1)(d)(2) 50 grams to 5000 grams

Imprisonment up to one year but not less than one
month and fine up to five thousand Rupees but notless than one thousand Rupees.

14(1)(d)(3) 5000 grams to 2 kilograms

Imprisonment up to two years but not less than six
months and fine up to ten thousand rupees but notless than two thousand Rupees

14(1)(d)(4) 2 kilograms to 10 kilograms

Imprisonment up to five years but not less than one
year and fine up to twenty five thousand Rupees but
not less than five thousand Rupees

14(1)(d)(5) 10 kilograms onwards

Imprisonment up to ten years and fine one lakh
Rupees but not less than fifteen thousand Rupees

Opium, coca

14(1)(e)Consumption of opium, coca andImprisonment up to one year and fine up to ten

and otherother narcotic drugs made of opium thousand Rupees

narcotic

and coca

drugs madeof opium and
coca

220

14(1)(f)(1) Farming of opium and coca up to 25 Imprisonment up to three years but not less than one
plantsyear and fine up to twenty five thousand Rupees but
not less than five thousand Rupees

128TH INTERNATIONAL TRAINING COURSEPARTICIPANTS’ PAPERS

14(1)(f)(2) Farming of opium and coca morethan 25 plants

Imprisonment up to ten years but not less than threemonths and fine up to two lakh Rupees but not lessthan twenty five thousand Rupees

14(1)(g)Prohibited act other than farming of Imprisonment up to ten years but not less than five

14(1)(g)(1) coca and opium up to 25 grams

years and fine up to twenty five thousand Rupees but
not less than five thousand Rupees

14(1)(g)(2) 25 grams to 100 grams

Imprisonment up to fifteen years but not less than ten
years and fine up to two lakh Rupees but not less thanseventy five thousand Rupees

14(1)(g)(3) 100 grams onwards

Imprisonment up to life imprisonment but not lessthan fifteen years and fine up to twenty five lakh
Rupees but not less than five lakh Rupees

Other

14(1)(h)Addiction

Imprisonment up one year or fine up to one thousand

narcotic

Rupees or bothdrugs and

Other prohibited acts other than

Imprisonment up to ten years but not less than two

psychotropic

addiction

years and fine up to twenty lakh Rupees but not lesssubstances

than one lakh Rupees

To enforce the Act effectively HMG has established a special investigation branch - the Narcotic Drugs
Law Enforcement Unit - under the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It has a special investigative team to tackle
the problem looking after drug trafficking within the capital valley. Outside the valley the local police officers
investigate the case.

The Cases of Trafficking of Narcotic Drugs Heard by Trial Courts
During the Last Four Years5
Fiscal Year

Total Number of Cases
Of the Of the year
previousyear

Disposal

Total

Conviction

PartialAcquittal
Conviction

Pending

Rate ofConviction
(%)

Total

56/57

406

418

824

217

170

76

463

361

46.87

57/58

361

227

588

183

104

97

384

204

41.04

58/59

204

96

300

101

61

41

203

97

49.90

59/60

97

248

345

68

34

43

145

200

46.90

IX. MONEY LAUNDERING
Money laundering is not only a crime that violates the legal rules of a state but it helps to conceal theillegal proceeds of the most heinous crimes and brings the ill-gotten money ultimately back in the economy
causing various adverse effects to the system. The corrupt officials, illegal drug dealers and humantraffickers are the potential users of this vicious cycle of money. The easier it is to launder the money thehigher the rate of those organized international crimes.
There are various modes of money laundering in the world. In all modes three stages are common. First,
the money earned through the illegal source is placed in a bank, electronic money or monetary instrument
or in highly priced goods. Secondly, the money is layered through a series of transfers and transactions tosufficiently hide its illegal connection. Lastly, the money is integrated into the system. Then the criminals
5 Annual Report of the Attorney General of the Kingdom of Nepal, 2059/60.

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RESOURCE MATERIAL SERIES No.67

can use the money as if it were legally earned money.

Hawala is a common method of money laundering in Nepal. The Hawala people have their network
almost all over the world. They can take money at any place and provide it anywhere in the world. They do
not carry the money but the agent of the particular place is ordered to pay the amount to the person who
carries a secret order. The increase of Nepalese people in foreign employment has provided a better
opportunity for the Hawala people. The remittances of Nepalese working in the Gulf and South-East Asian
countries received through the Hawala system is higher than that from the legal banking channels. Anothermethod of money laundering is intermingling illegal proceeds with legal source money and treating themearned through the legal source. In a case of corruption of an ex-Minister it was found that the inventory of
his property did not match the known source of his income; it was extremely high. The accused Ministerclaimed that the property was earned through a trekking business of his son. But the income of his son did
not support the huge amount of property and was very much higher than he declared in his income tax
returns. Recently the Corruption Special Court found the Minister guilty of illegally accumulating money on
the ground that his known source of property did not support the income of the property so declared. The
Minister was imprisoned for a term of two and half years and fined Rupees about three crore in addition toconfiscating the property of three crore rupees illegally earned. It may be assumed that there are a numberof such illegal activities linked with legal businesses and the illegal money is mixed with the legal money andthat is laundered. There are national and international measures devised to counter money laundering.
One of the necessary elements for facilitating money laundering is bank secrecy laws. Bank secrecy laws
allow the safe deposit of illegal money because there is a guarantee that the person is not required to showhow he/she received the money. In Nepal, in the financial Year 53/54, the Finance Minister declared a policyof requiring disclosure of the source of money amounting to more than Rupees five lakh that is deposited
into a bank account. But the policy has not yet been implemented. And there is no necessity of disclosure
while depositing money in a bank in the local currency. But it is mandatory in Nepal to disclose foreign
currency deposited in a Nepalese Bank.
The bank secrecy law is not available in case of investigation of corruption cases to the amount, and othervaluables, deposited in a bank. There were no clear provisions what to do in case of a corruption casebecause the banking law provided that it is the duty of a bank to maintain the secrecy of the accounts of theirclients. On this basis a bank used to refuse to disclose the details of their customers’ bank accounts. The
newly enacted Prevention of Corruption Act, 2002 provides that notwithstanding anything mentioned in any
law in force, if it appears from a source during the course of investigation that there has been a financialtransaction or the operation of a bank account in the name of any person in a bank or financial institution
within the Kingdom or abroad, the investigating authority may order the account frozen. Similarly, the law
authorizes the investigating authority to impose a fine of up to fifty thousand Rupees on a bank or financial
institution if they do not freeze the account or fail to furnish the details.
There is no specific legislation enacted intending to address the problem of money laundering. The
Foreign Exchange (Regulation) Act, 1962 has tried inter alia to address the problem of money laundering tosome extent. It regulates the transactions of foreign exchange to and from the Kingdom and within theKingdom. Nepal Rastra Bank (the Central Bank) is the chief regulating authority of the Act. It has further
authorized the Bank to issue various directives to regulate the foreign exchange of the import and export
business. In addition, the Bank is the licensing authority that grants permission to money changers within
the Kingdom. The value of transactions in foreign currency contrary to those Regulations is confiscated andthe perpetrator punished by a fine of three times the amount of the transaction.
The Authority for investigation of the violation of the Foreign Exchange Regulations committed within
the Kathmandu Valley is given to the Department of Revenue Investigation and in other remaining
jurisdictions of the Kingdom the local police authority has power to investigate such cases. In Addition, theDepartment has authority to investigate the cases of revenue evasion throughout the Kingdom of Nepal.

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Foreign Exchange Regulations Violations and Revenue Leakage Investigated and Prosecuted by the
Revenue Leakage Investigation Authority in FY 59/606
Nature of Crime

Total Number of Cases
Of the Of the year
previousyear
23

Decision to Prosecute
Prosecuted

Notprosecuted

32

19

3

12

12

4

1

1

3

12

Total

Illegal transactions of Forex

9

Revenue leakage/evasion

4

Violation of Forex transactions

3

9

12

12

16

32

48

22

Total

Pending

regulation
Total

3

25

23

The above table shows the statistics relating to the cases investigated by the Department of Revenue
Investigation. There is no categorical mention of details of cases after the decision to prosecute. It only
states prosecution or non-prosecution. It is very clear from the table that the cases of tax evasion are
nominal in Nepal. But I am of the view that there are rampant tax evasions in Nepal. The situation is thatthey are not investigated properly. A strong and practical strategy is required for that purpose.
The following table shows the number of cases related to violations of the foreign exchange regulations
tried by trial courts. This includes both those prosecuted after investigation by the Department of Revenue
Investigation as well as those by the local police authorities throughout the Kingdom of Nepal. In
comparison to other crimes it seems that there are a higher number of crimes committed violating theforeign exchange regulations. On the other hand the ratio of conviction of suspects also is not satisfactoryand needs improvement in the implementation process.

Foreign Exchange Regulations Violations Heard by Trial Courts
During the Last Four Years7
Fiscal Year

Total Number of Cases
Of the Of the year
previousyear

Disposal

Total

Conviction

56/57

29

37

66

18

57/58

34

26

60

22

58/59

29

21

50

8

59/60

32

26

58

3

PartialAcquittal
Conviction
7

Pending

Rate ofConviction
(%)

Total

7

32

34

56.25

9

31

29

70.97

2

8

18

32

44.44

11

4

18

40

16.67

X. CONCLUSION
Legislation dealing with economic crimes is enacted in Nepal. But this legislation is not adequate to copewith the complexity of the problems that have arisen by the globalization of economic activities, facilitated bymodern information technology. All of them are somehow outdated and need revamping and there are someareas where no law is in existence. Laws against drug trafficking, trafficking in human beings, andcounterfeiting are in existence but they need modification. There is no separate legislation for fighting
money laundering. Some segments of the anti-trafficking laws are included in the anti-corruption law,narcotic drugs law and banking laws, which are not sufficient. Similarly there are no laws regulating
computer crimes and cyber crimes. Now it is necessary to enact legislation intending to target the crime ofmoney laundering. Similarly, like other crimes the ratio of convictions for economic crime is not verysatisfactory and we need an improvement after diagnosing the problems of economic crimes empirically.
6 Revenue Investigation Authority.
7 Annual Report of the Attorney General of the Kingdom of Nepal, 2059/60.

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