Kathmandu: Former Auditor General Tankamani Sharma Dangal, entrusted with the Ncell share purchase and sale investigation, has flown to the UK before completing the inquiry.

Despite the expiration of the high-level investigation committee’s term today, he departed for Britain last Sunday. Sharma is attending a program at the Oxford Center for the Study of Corruption and Transparency under Oxford University and is expected to return on Friday.

The investigation remains unfinished, prompting Sharma to apply for a deadline extension to the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology before his departure. Sources indicate a proposal for an extension until 15th Magh has been submitted.

Previously accused of facilitating in the Ncell tax dispute report, Sharma faced controversy. However, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal defended him before the parliamentary committee.

Controversy surrounds the Ncell case after revelations of Axiata selling 80 percent of Ncell’s shares to Spectralite UK. The issue intensified with a public announcement of buying and selling without notifying the regulatory body. The Patan High Court has scheduled a hearing for tomorrow, Wednesday, further complicating matters as the deadline for disclosing Ncell shares’ buyers and sellers has passed.

Purushottam Khanal, the Chairman of the Telecommunication Authority, with a crucial role in overseeing the legal aspects of the Ncell sale and purchase case, has tendered his resignation today.