Kalpana Bhattarai
Salman Gole, Bhim Lama, and Avatar Vaiba, the operators of Kalikot Overseas, scammed people by showing them dreams of Europe.
Sujan Kumar Khadka, 31, from Ramche, was enticed by an advertisement published on the 10th of Mangsir, 2074 (November 25, 2017) in a daily newspaper. The advertisement promised “employment opportunities in Poland” with a demand for 200 workers, offering a salary of NPR 103,000, including food and accommodation.
After returning from two years in Dubai, Sujan contacted the phone number provided in the newspaper advertisement and was called to the office. The meeting took place in Dhumbahari, at the office of Kalikot Overseas.
There were around 20 other youths who, like Sujan, had come searching for jobs. The Manpower Director, Sanman Gole, stated that “Poland could be an option, and you can easily make it to Germany.” Hearing this, Khadka agreed to go to Germany.
Upon reaching Poland, Sujan made plans to move to other European countries as well. He was given a similar assurance as “finding God while looking for a stone.” To go to Germany, the process involved participating in the UN youth program and staying illegally. He was told to apply online and pay the manpower agency NPR 100,000. However, during the interview at the German Embassy, Sujan was declared ineligible.
Sanman assured Sujan that he would be sent to Portugal. Along with Khadka, 11 others were also prepared to go to Portugal, and the total cost amounted to NPR 13,200,000. Their dream was to make it to Europe no matter what.
Even though they mentioned in the advertisement that interviews would be conducted legally, Sujan and his group had been preparing for illegal ways to enter Portugal. They had already bought tickets from Delhi to Mumbai, continuing their journey to Kenya in Africa, and finally reaching Bissau, the capital of Guinea-Bissau in West Africa. Guinea-Bissau served as a stepping stone to Portugal.
After reaching Bissau, they had planned to arrange a meeting with an agent who would facilitate their settlement in Portugal. The agent had assured them that immigration officials at the Nepal-China border would be convinced by him, but when that didn’t work, he sent them back. They had spent only NPR 700,000 on living and eating in Bissau, and Sujan stated that they had understood that the agent was cheating them.
Their journey involved traveling from Delhi to Mumbai, then to Nairobi in Kenya, and finally to Bissau, Guinea-Bissau. Sujan revealed that it cost them an additional EUR 150 (approximately NPR 19,500) for their stay and food in Bissau. Khadka added that “we paid the agent NPR 1,500,000, but when we asked for a refund, he told us that he had spent NPR 12,00,000 just for our air tickets from Delhi to return to Kathmandu.”
Several people have fallen victim to the deception of the Kalikot Overseas advertisement, including Santosh Paudel from Rautahat. He, too, intended to go to Portugal along with Hemkumari Shrestha, who was accompanying him.
The director showed a demand letter for agricultural work to the workers who had come for foreign employment. Santosh and his friend had paid NPR 1.6 million each. A month later, they were told it was a “late offer letter.”
Along with Santosh, a group of 32 people applied for interviews at the Embassy of Portugal in Delhi in 2075 BS. They stayed in a hotel in Paharganj, Delhi, for 17 days. During this time, Gole added 53 more people to be interviewed. Paudel stated, “We waited for interviews, but no one showed up.”
After not finding any interviews, they demanded their money back. Gole assured them over the phone that he would arrange their settlement in Portugal. Paudel said, “He assured us over the phone that he would handle everything, but now he is not in contact with us.”
Gole had fled with everyone’s money and passports four months earlier. He had also sold the manpower agency. The “late offer letter” he provided turned out to be fake.
Driven by the desire to earn well in Europe, Paudel had sold his computer shop in Rautahat. He remarked, “The desire to go abroad made me leave my business. Now I am working for a low salary in someone else’s shop.”
Even Dev Rana Magar, who had returned after working as a security guard in Malaysia in 2004, was scammed by the same manpower agency. He had paid NPR 400,000 to Gole for a job in Portugal, but it didn’t materialize.
Initially, a group of 46 individuals, including Dev, was told they would be sent to Poland. When they couldn’t obtain visas, they were sent to the Embassy of Portugal in Delhi. Even though they were assured they would get visas, it didn’t happen.
Dev said, “Gole’s self-confidence and his influence among the group made us believe him. We all trusted him.”
These incidents highlight the exploitation of workers who aspire to work abroad, only to fall victim to fraud and deception.
Various Documents in the Fraud Case
Discovered Reverse Debt: 2076 Kartik In the case of fraud, there are various documents. Among those who have applied for repayment, there are 25 cases registered against Kalikot Overseas in the Foreign Employment Department. Out of the total victims, only 65 have applied for repayment, even though OverSeas had scammed more than three hundred.
In the pursuit of collecting money for repayment, Sujan, Santosh, Dev, and Deepak have rented a room in Kathmandu. Santosh says, “We have spent an additional three hundred thousand in chasing after the department and the manpower.”
Dev works part-time at Sakura Hotel in Thamel for a monthly salary of 15 thousand rupees. During the day, the department and manpower businessmen look for repayment. He says, “In the pursuit of recovering the debt, we are burdened with additional loans.”
Sujan has been trying to collect his lost money for eight months now. Despite contacting the manpower agency, Gole, who is in touch with the victims, keeps assuring them that they will get their money back. He says, “At first, we approached the manpower for repayment, but after some time, everyone applied for repayment through the department.”
Having been scammed in Guinea-Bissau, Sujan has returned to Nepal with a friend. He reveals that his friend agreed to go to Canada, taking six lakhs from him. He says, “He didn’t inform us about our matter. We didn’t even suspect he was scammed in the greed to get Permanent Residency (PR) there.”
Many victims, less repayment: According to the Foreign Employment Department’s statistics, there were 769 youths applying for repayment in 2074/75. In 2075/76, only 1,263 have applied.
“Many have been deceived while seeking illegal routes to Europe and America; therefore, they do not come forward for repayment,” says Hari Prasad Gnyawali, the department’s director. “Even when they come, it’s difficult to verify.”
The three alleged masterminds behind human trafficking and fraud, Sanman Gole, Avatar Waiba, and Bhim Lama, have been accused of committing fraud amounting to three crores in the department.
The department has also cut off communication with the three operators. The bureau’s DSP, Rajkumar Silwali, reveals that an investigation against all three accused is ongoing.
Returning from Abroad: Manpower
Sanman Gole, the operator of Kalikot Overseas, returned from Malaysia in 2006 after three years and began working as an agent to send workers to Malaysia.
Originally from Padampokhari in Ward 13 of Hetauda Sub-Metropolitan City, he had a permanent residence in Bauddha Chucchepati. In Baishakh of 2074, he started operating Kalikot Overseas. He, along with his associates, also deceived them into sending them to Europe for foreign employment, as told by his friend Dev Rana Magar.
The other two operators of Overseas, Avatar and Bhim, also initially worked as agents in the manpower sector. All three of them are originally from Makwanpur. Sanman, in particular, has political connections, having been elected as the chairman of Kailash Rural Municipality in the local elections of 2074. Locals claim that Bhim spent the money meant for sending youth to Europe on election expenses in Kailash Rural Municipality. The chairman of the ward, Manoj Waiba, reveals that Bhim incurred expenses in the election by promising young people in the village that he would send them to Europe, which later turned out to be a scam.
