In a strong move against financial offences, Nepal Police arrested 45-year-old Sarvesh Joshi of Smart Telecom on charges of fraud and criminal breach of trust. Joshi, a resident of Khursanitar in Kathmandu Metropolitan City-2, was taken into custody on Monday after the Kathmandu District Court issued an arrest warrant.
Joshi is accused of attempting to illegally misappropriate and transfer the ownership of Smart Telecom’s assets. According to the police, these assets legally belong to the government following the cancellation of the company’s operating license.
The Nepal Telecommunications Authority (NTA) stated that Smart Telecom Pvt. Ltd. originally received its license to operate basic telephone services on Baishakh 2, 2070 (April 2013). However, the company failed to renew its license in accordance with regulatory requirements. Consequently, the license was automatically revoked on Baishakh 3, 2080 (April 2023) under the Telecommunications Act, 2053.
Following the cancellation, the NTA took full control of the company’s properties, infrastructure, and telecommunications network, acting under the Telecommunication Service Provider Asset Management Regulations, 2079. Joshi’s arrest stems from his alleged efforts to unlawfully interfere with these government-controlled assets.
The government had previously provided Smart Telecom with multiple opportunities to clear its massive financial obligations. In 2019, an initial decision to cancel their license was overturned, granting the company the chance to pay its arrears in five installments. Most recently, the Council of Ministers had extended the payment deadline by another six months, which the company also failed to honour.
At the time the license was cancelled, Smart Telecom owed the government Rs 20.13 billion. With a penalty of Rs 3 billion, the total reached Rs 23.13 billion. Today, with accumulated interest, the company’s outstanding debt to the government has swelled to approximately Rs 30 billion.