Dhangadhi, April 3 – Sudurpaschim Province’s Minister of Industry, Tourism, Forest, and Environment, Laxman Kishore Chaudhary, resigned under pressure on Saturday following the release of an audio clip implicating him in a plan with illegal timber dealers to log sal (Shorea robusta) trees for profit. The exposed dialogue came out roughly a week earlier and indicated that Chaudhary had been collaborating with ex-forest minister and CPN-UML politburo member Narad Muni Rana, alongside various unidentified wood merchants, to systematically organize extensive logging activities.

After the scandal broke out, Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah ordered Chaudhary—who represented the Nagarik Unmukti Party in the provincial cabinet—to resign. Since then, Chaudhary has acknowledged their conversation yet asserted that it occurred back in August of the previous year—well before he entered office. He contended that the leaked dialogue was being utilized as part of an intra-party feud within his organization.

The released audio conversation allegedly focused on accelerating the development of rules aimed at streamlining the harvesting process for sal trees. Nevertheless, it is uncertain if these proposed guidelines were related to environmentally friendly forest practices or specific policies governing individual timber operations.

According to sources, the talks were focused on legalizing logging and selling sal trees from privately owned forests. An audio clip suggests that ex-minister Rana significantly influenced these discussions as both an advisor and mediator. As the UML’s district head for Kailali, Rana can be heard directing Chaudhary to mimic the forest management policies of Lumbini province by simply substituting “Lumbini” with “Sudurpaschim,” thus speeding up the authorization procedures. Additionally, Rana allegedly encouraged Chaudhary, stating, “Both you and I have upcoming election campaigns. Winning requires financial resources.”

Chaudhary could be overheard stating that Chief Minister Shah, as well as Resham Chaudhary, the founding figure of the Nagarik Unmukti Party, and party chairman Ranjita Shrestha, ought to join them too. During the discussion, they also referenced a monetary arrangement totaling Rs3 million.

Regarding the accusations, UML chief Rana refuted having any financial connection. “My discussions were solely about policies; there was no reference to monetary dealings,” stated Rana during a media briefing held on Tuesday.

The local Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forestry, and Environment has prepared a document named “Guidelines for Utilization and Surveillance of Sal Trees in Designated Private Woodlands—2024.” Sources indicate that the disclosed discussion was centered around the creation of these exact guidelines.

In November 2024, the draft was sent to both the provincial Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law and the provincial Ministry of Economic Affairs for their input. The Ministry of Internal Affairs granted approval in December, followed by the Economic Affairs Ministry giving its consent in January of this year. After receiving these approvals, the draft guidelines were formally registered at the Chief Minister’s Office on January 8th. Nonetheless, the endorsement from the Chief Minister’s Office remains pending.

“Due to growing pressures from multiple sides, we have temporarily halted it,” stated Chief Minister Shah.

Earlier, logging was permitted exclusively for fallen or deceased Sal trees found within community forests. On November 23, 2023, though, the national Ministry of Forest and Environment published an announcement in the Nepal Gazette permitting private property owners to harvest, utilize, move, and market Sal trees cultivated in their duly recorded personal woodlands. Despite stipulating that provinces should manage these activities, claims have emerged suggesting that this supervisory structure may have been distorted for monetary profit.

Reports suggest that the same organization behind advocating for this policy nationally intended to implement it throughout all seven regions, thereby facilitating unrestricted logging under the pretense of private forest management. Concerned environmental advocates worry that this action might result in widespread deforestation.

The proposed regulations of the Sudurpaschim Province contained clauses permitting landowners to seek authorization from local authorities for cutting down sal trees. Should the local government delay or deny this request, officials from the District-Level Division Forest Office had the power to overrule their decision. This rule also extended to vegetation located on publicly owned or unclaimed land bordering privately held plots.

Foresters contend that making saal tree logging legal would speed up deforestation. “Illicit logging is already diminishing our woodlands. Granting unregulated logging permissions to property owners could be exploited by timber traffickers who would then ravage the forests,” stated Karan Rawal, the chairman of the Federation of Community Forest Users Nepal for Kailali district.

Rawal also asserted that timber dealers had been shaping governmental policies concerning sustainable forest management and the timber trade for an extended period.

The scandal has once more brought attention to the entrenched corruption within Nepal’s forestry industry, an area where political figures, civil servants, and commercial entities frequently join forces to misuse natural assets. Following Chaudhary’s stepping down, all eyes are now on Chief Minister Shah’s administration to tackle these accusations and enforce transparency in managing forests.