The high-level inquiry committee formed by the government under the chairmanship of former chief secretary Shankardas Bairagi is going to study the Tribhuvan International Airport immigration reform only.

As the Authority has conducted a separate investigation on the airport's state of affairs and irregularities, the committee has been given 9-point jurisdiction to make recommendations to the government after studying the problems caused by policy, legal and structural deficiencies. According to one member of the committee, the committee will start working immediately after making the procedure.

Minister of Home Affairs Ramesh Akhtar said that the government formed the committee on the basis of the two-point agreement with the main opposition Maoist and it will work in the direction of policy reforms. The government and the Maoists had agreed on two points in this direction on May 30.

The two-point agreement signed by UML chief whip Mahesh Kumar Bertaula and Maoist chief whip Hitraj Pandey on behalf of the government includes the government's support to the investigation of the authority, and the government's study and investigation to solve the problems seen in the past in relation to immigration and visit visas, and to take concrete initiatives in policy, legal and structural reforms.

The home minister author read out the 9-point jurisdiction given to the 7-member committee chaired by Bairagi in the parliament meeting on Tuesday. The first point of jurisdiction given to the committee includes the issue of facilitating the travel of people going abroad for all purposes, including immigration management, visit visa, and proposing action plans for immediate and long-term improvements.

Similarly, if there is a need for amendment or review of existing laws, regulations, procedures, standards and other policy and legal arrangements, submission of suggestions including drafts, suggestions for improvements in the existing structural arrangements in immigration management, suggestions for improvements in personnel management, submission of suggestions for improvements and arrangements to be made in coordination and cooperation between related agencies in order to avoid creating problems in immigration management and the arrival and departure of citizens.

In order to implement international best practices in the direction of immigration management and facilitating the travel of citizens, to implement them according to Nepal's environment, to study the problems faced by travelers and the problems arising from staying abroad illegally, and to take measures to prevent them, to make the immigration system technology-friendly, simple, easy, and fast, and to make service delivery effective,  The committee has been asked to organize the role of relevant bodies or institutions related to the matter of arrival and departure from abroad and to suggest measures to be taken to keep the records of arrival and departure of immigration safe and sound.

After the two points were agreed upon, the Maoists, who retreated from the obstruction of the parliament, have taken a step forward and thanked the government for the formation of the committee, while the opposition National Independent Party and RPP have continued their protest in the parliament saying that the committee is unacceptable. They have been demanding that a committee should be formed under the chairmanship of Bahalwala or a former judge. 

Maoist leader Varshman Pun thanked for forming the committee and said that he is hopeful that there will be a fair and independent investigation for the reform of the Adhyagan. Ever since Tirtha Bhattarai, who is the chief immigration officer of the Tribhuvan International Airport office, was pulled up for investigation by the Abuse of Authority Investigation Commission on June 7th, questions have been raised in the Parliament and outside the Parliament about the irregularity and irregularities in immigration.

UML's Chief Secretary Mahesh Bertaula said that the visit visa case entered the Parliament after the then Chief Immigration Officer of the Tribhuvan International Airport Office, Tirtha Bhattarai, was taken into custody by the Authority on June 7th, and since the task of bringing it to a conclusion was by the Authority, the government formed a high-level committee focusing on the policy shortcomings.

The police investigates criminal crimes such as murder, robbery, theft, kidnapping, fraud, etc. The authority deals with the crime of corruption. Since the visit visa case is connected with abuse of authority, the authority is studying it from different levels. The prosecution process is done by the authority itself according to the constitution and laws. "Others cannot interfere," says Bertaula. If there is evidence that the Home Minister, Tirtha Bhattarai or any other person is involved in the visit visa, it can be reported to the authority. But it is not good to mistrust the government regarding the formation of the committee.

Bertaula said that the high-level committee was formed so that everyone's feelings are represented and it works effectively. "Raspawa and RPP are trying to bring political issues. However, this is a legal and administrative matter. It is a matter of improving immigration," he said. "It is not good to distrust the Prime Minister, Ministers, state agencies, mechanisms, structures, organs and the entire bureaucracy. A solution should be found through dialogue.

Congress chief whip Shyam Ghimire said that since the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority is investigating regarding irregularities and corruption, the committee formed by the government will study only in the direction of policy and structural reforms. "Some people think that this inquiry was made against the Home Minister, but it is not. The committee is to clearly study what are the legal, structural and policy issues for the reform of immigration and submit suggestions to the government," said Ghimire. That means that the authorities look at corruption and irregularities. The committee is supposed to suggest policy and structural reforms only, there is no question that this committee will investigate the Home Minister.

The committee consists of Joint Secretary Anand Karki of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Finance Tirtha Raj Chiluwal, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Aruna Joshi, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Ramkrishna Lamichhane, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mani Ratna Sharma and Labour. Pradeep Koirala, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Employment and Social Security is a member.

RSVP Vice Chairman Swarnim Wagle has said that they will not accept such a committee as the former Chief Secretary Bairagi, the coordinator of the committee, is himself under the radar of the investigation. Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday, he also asked Bairagi not to take responsibility for the coincidence as he is a character surrounded by conflict of interest. Wagle said that he is a character suffering from a conflict of interest and should be in the good books of the leaders.