KATHMANDU, March 4 -- Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has instructed Chief Secretary Baikuntha Prasad Aryal to go on leave, citing Aryal's alleged involvement in financial misappropriation related to the Telecommunication Traffic Monitoring and Fraud Control System (TERAMOCS).

Sources in the Prime Minister's Office said that the Prime Minister on Sunday morning instructed Chief Secretary Aryal to take leave.

The Prime Minister issued this instruction as the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) was finalizing preparations to file a case against Aryal. The CIAA is said to have prepared to register a case based on allegations of irregularities worth millions of rupees in the procurement of the TERAMOCS by the Nep...