The Commission of Inquiry into the incidents of 23 and 24 Bhadra has prepared to write a letter to the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli for his statement. The Commission officials have already discussed the issue of writing a letter to Oli with Prime Minister Sushila Karki. The Commission is only left to take a statement from Oli.

The commission, which completed its statement with then Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak on Wednesday, held discussions with Prime Minister Karki at Singha Durbar on Thursday. Now that it is the then Prime Minister's turn, the commission officials said that they discussed with the Prime Minister how to proceed.

'Since Oli has repeatedly expressed his rejection of the commission and his refusal to give a statement, we discussed with the Prime Minister what to do if he does not appear before the commission or refuses to give a statement,' he said. According to the officials, Prime Minister Karki has suggested that no one should be asked to give a statement in a commission formed according to the constitution and law, and to proceed according to the law.

In this regard, the commission needs the government's support. Prime Minister Karki has also said that he should coordinate with Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal and inform him.

Commission Chairman Gauri Bahadur Karki said that a letter will be written to the then Prime Minister Oli soon for his presence in the statement. 'We are in the process of calling the then Prime Minister Oli. All those invited by the commission so far have come, and the commission is confident that he will also come,' he said. When asked what he is prepared to do if Oli does not come, Karki said, ‘Tomorrow’s matters will be decided tomorrow.’ 

According to the commission, the questions to be asked to Oli in the statement have been prepared. The commission has stated that questions will be asked on the repression carried out on 23 Bhadra, security preparations, etc. A member of the commission said that questions will be asked to Oli such as the reason for the commission’s closure of social media, whether the government was aware of the Gen-G youth’s permission for the demonstration. 

How the incident of 24 Bhadra happened, who is responsible for it, and why security could not be provided when the Parliament building and the President’s Office were set on fire are also being prepared to ask Oli. The commission member said that the questionnaire for Oli was prepared keeping in mind the questions raised during the statements of security personnel deployed in the field to the then Home Minister. 

The commission, which was formed on 5 Asoj under the leadership of former judge Karki, has Vigyanraj Sharma and Bisheshwor Prasad Bhandari as members. The deadline has been extended by one month after the commission did not complete its work after being given three months. The commission will now have to complete the statement and prepare the report within three weeks. Commission Chairman Karki said that the report will be submitted to the government within the additional one month.

 The commission initially collected details of the damage. Then, the statements of the security personnel deployed in the field were taken. In the second phase, the commission took statements from the concerned officers up to the office chief. In the third phase, it took statements from Army Chief Ashok Raj Sigdel, Armed Police Force IGP Raju Aryal, the then Nepal Police IGP Chandrakuber Khapung, and the then Chief of the National Investigation Department Hutraj Thapa. 

In the fourth phase, the statements of the then Chief Secretary Ek Narayan Aryal, General Secretary of Parliament Padam Prasad Pandey, and the then Home Secretary Gokarna Mani Duwadi, and the then Chief District Officer of Kathmandu Chhabi Rijal, who were in the administrative leadership, were taken. In the fifth phase, the commission entered the political level. 

Will Oli give a statement?

The then Prime Minister Oli has been arguing that since Commission Chairman Karki had already made his views public, he would be biased. He has commented that it was not Gen-G but anarchic groups that infiltrated and wreaked havoc. He has also expressed that he does not need to give a statement to the commission. 

 The government is confident that Oli will cooperate with the commission because he attended the meeting with President Ram Chandra Poudel and Prime Minister Sushila Karki. Government spokesperson Jagdish Kharel met Oli in Gundu a week ago. Commission officials have been saying that if Oli does not come to give a statement based on the letter, legal action will be taken. 

If Oli does not appear to give a statement, the commission is prepared to make him give a statement by mutual agreement rather than arresting him by deploying security personnel. The government also seems to be in favor of working in coordination rather than making it more controversial. The commission officials have the option of going to Oli's residence in Gundu or taking a written statement. A member of the commission said that there will be discussions and coordination with the government on what to do if Oli does not come to give a statement. 

The commission may direct the process of taking action against those found guilty in the investigation. It can order a person to produce documents for investigation, examine evidence, and request documents and copies from government offices and courts. Section 4 of the Inquiry Act also gives the commission the power to conduct searches and seize any found items if it believes there are documents or evidence related to the investigation.

The government has given five mandates to the Karki-led Inquiry Commission. The main mandate is to ‘receive information or applications related to physical and human damage, analyze them, and provide opinions for action.’ The commission is also responsible for investigating the physical and human damage caused during the protests, finding out the reasons for the incident, suggesting measures to be adopted to prevent such incidents from recurring, and presenting a clear action plan for implementing the suggestions mentioned in the report.

Author’s residence limit lifted after statement 

After the Inquiry Commission wrote a letter, the then Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak went for a statement last Monday. During his statement for about three hours that day, the author gave written and oral answers to some questions asked by the commission. On 23 Bhadra, he had claimed that he had not given the order to shoot. He had said that he was hurt by the incident in the Gen-G movement and resigned from his post showing his morality.