Generally, it is the parliamentary practice of Nepal that the bi-monthly discussion of the bill should be held in the plenary session of the parliamentary committee and it is open to journalists to report, but in the parliamentary sub-committee, coordinator Badu, UML MP Pant and others banned journalists from reporting the bi-monthly discussion.
UML MP Raghuji Pant has become angry after the news was published that the sub-committee constituted by the Public Order and Good Governance Committee has proposed to make a law on the Federal Civil Service Bill so that the retired civil servants have been found guilty of crimes involving moral turpitude including corruption. Recently, he has become hostile to journalists and has been lobbying for the secret of parliamentary committee meetings.
In Monday's meeting of the State Affairs Committee, MP Pant expressed his anger at the news and suggested that journalists should be banned from reporting on the parliamentary committee meeting.
UML MP Pant told the Chairman of the State Affairs Committee, Ramhari Khatiwada, that along with South Asian countries including India and Bangladesh, the parliaments of the American countries also do not allow reporting in the parliamentary committee, and said that journalists in Nepal should also be stopped from writing the news of the committee.
UML MP Pant has proposed that the chief secretary and secretaries hesitate to express their views when journalists are present in the parliamentary committee. He has also claimed that the journalist wrote wrong things about the news. He also demanded that in the coming days, publicizing the committee meetings and reports prepared by the committee on the bill should be stopped.
'Let's see where journalists have rights and where they don't have rights . Before I tell them (parliamentary reporting journalists) to shut down, let's see where the parliamentary committee is/is not open . Nowhere in South Asia. It is closed in India,' he said, 'misinterpretation started happening . Which chief secretary will come next? Which Chief Secretary will come and speak when slogans are raised against him due to misinterpretation of what he said here?'
UML MP Pant's demand was to stop the journalists from writing the news of the parliamentary committee, looking at the international practice and being responsible towards the chief secretary, secretaries and staff of the parliamentary committee.
In Nepal, the parliamentary committee has been holding an open meeting about the regular discussion on the bill and other topics. Only on serious issues including national security, parliamentary committee meetings are held in secret and there are provisions in the rules of the parliament . However, MP Pant has proposed that the journalists who come to report during the regular discussion on the bill in the parliamentary committee should be removed . He said that no matter how much he opposes it, it doesn't matter to him .
'Let's look at the international practice, I'm not saying that, I don't mind if journalist friends denounce it . I also looked at the international practice . Look at America, look at Canada, look at Australia . 100% of meetings are not open. Some are open, some are not. It is not open anywhere in South Asia, no entry for the press in committee meetings in India and Bangladesh,' he said.
It was Pant's proposal that the bill registered by the government in the Parliament should be discussed in the parliamentary committee without allowing the press and the report made on it should be made public only after it is passed. "Only after the committee (report) was finalized, it had to be made public, it had to go to the press," he said.
It was Pant's insistence that such a system was not sought to protect employees convicted of corruption. He said that it would be unfair to make a law so that ex-employees do not get pension even if they are convicted in a common case. He also made a new proposal to give the court the right to decide whether to get pension or not after being found guilty by the court.
Pant objected to the news about the report prepared by the sub-committee formed in connection with the Bill, 2080 to make provisions regarding the formation, operation and conditions of service of the federal civil service. According to the report prepared by the sub-committee after discussing the bill, retired civil servants are going to get pension benefits even if they are found guilty of corruption and moral corruption.
Parliamentary sub-committee prepared a report to enact a law to provide pension even if an employee is found guilty of crimes such as corruption, crimes against the state, drug dealing, kidnapping and extortion after retirement. The sub-committee had removed the section of the original bill brought by the government that states that if convicted of a crime of moral corruption including corruption, they will not get pension from the state and put another section .
'When the government brought the bill, section 68 had a provision related to 'not getting pension' . In which it was said, 'After the commencement of this act, a person who is receiving pension or family pension after the commencement of the act is found guilty of corruption, government or public act, crime against the state, drug dealing, money laundering, sale of antiquities, human trafficking, kidnapping and hostage-taking, coercion, polygamy or other criminal offenses showing moral turpitude, he will not receive such pension.' The sub-committee, with Badu as its coordinator, removed section 68 of the original bill and placed a provision in it that 'no double benefit' should be taken. In the said sub-committee, Ishwari Neupane of Congress, Leelanath Shrestha and Raghuji Pant of UML, Hitraj Pandey of Maoist, Chanda Karki of RSVP, Wise Tamang of RPP, Rajendra Pandey of United Socialist Party, Ashok Rai of JSPA, Prakash Adhikari of JSPA Nepal and Sarvendranath Shukla of LOSPA were members.
MP Pant said that he is also the general secretary of the Federation of Journalists and has the ability to become the chairman of the Federation of Journalists if UML does not hold parliamentary elections in 2051.
However, the 'Legislation Act, 2081' which was passed by the Parliament itself, has provided that the general public should also participate in the law making . In order to prevent the creation of free laws by the parliament and the influence of middlemen, the Legislation Act approved by the President on 3 March 2081 has made various provisions to be adopted to formulate quality laws while ensuring the participation of stakeholders.
Parliamentarian Pant's proposal to ban journalists from reporting on parliamentary committees has been countered by Chairman of the Constitutional Affairs Committee, Ramhari Khatiwada. He said that the media that publishes and broadcasts news of parliamentary activities independently cannot be stopped. He clarified that the media will not be banned in the upcoming meeting of the committee and will be allowed to report uninterrupted.
The sub-committee formed under the coordination of Badu to resolve the controversial issues of the Federal Civil Bill also held meetings. Generally, it is a parliamentary practice of Nepal that the quarterly discussion of the bill should be held in the full meeting of the parliamentary committee and open to journalists for reporting. However, in the parliamentary sub-committee, coordinator Badu, UML MP Pant and others banned journalists from reporting on the quarterly discussion on the initiative of the chief secretary, the secretary of the law ministry, the law secretary of the office of the prime minister and the council of ministers, and the secretary of the federal affairs and general administration ministry.
20 meetings were held in secret and a report was prepared. The parliamentarians have objected to the report prepared by the sub-committee saying that the interests of high-ranking employees of the federal civil service have been proven.
After retiring from the service, the MPs of the ruling party objected that only high-ranking employees were listened to and those arrangements were kept, such as shortening the cooling period, setting the retirement age to 60 years and making it applicable at once, colluding with the leaders of political parties to pave the way for appointments to judges, ambassadors and constitutional bodies.
In the report of the sub-committee, opposition parties Maoist, RSWP, RPP along with the ruling LOSPA and JSPA Nepal have written different opinions on some issues . In the report prepared by the sub-committee, after the news that the MPs gave more priority to the interests of high-ranking staff involved in law making, UML MP Pant expressed his anger saying that journalists should be banned from reporting on parliamentary committees.
