Kathmandu, Dec. 31 -- The Special Court has ordered former minister Rajkumar Gupta to be remanded in judicial custody in connection with the Batulechaur, Pokhara land controversy and a bribery scandal exposed earlier this year.

A division bench of Special Court chair Sudarshan Dev Bhatta and members Dilli Ratna Shrestha and Bidur Koirala issued the order on Wednesday after recording Gupta's statement and conducting a detention hearing. The court ruled that he should remain behind bars while the case proceeds.

Gupta was embroiled in controversy after a leaked audio clip surfaced in which he was allegedly heard negotiating a Rs7.8 million bribe to secure a political appointment and transfer a government official in Kaski district.

The au...