The inquiry commission formed to investigate the incidents of 23 and 24 Bhadra has concluded that the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak and Inspector General of Nepal Police Chandrakuber Khapung did not take the necessary steps to stop the police firing for four hours before the curfew was imposed.

The commission has recommended action against Oli, Lekhak and Khapung under Sections 181 and 182 of the Criminal Code, concluding that they did not take the necessary steps to stop the firing and hold talks even though information about the actual security situation was being received from the field. Section 181 of the Criminal Code states that ‘no one shall kill anyone by negligent act’.

A person who commits such an offense can be imprisoned for 3 to 10 years and fined from 30,000 to 100,000 rupees. Section 182 states that ‘no one shall kill anyone by negligent act’. It is said that it can be imprisoned for up to 3 years and a fine of up to 30,000 rupees. 

Criminal action has been recommended against the then Home Secretary Gokarna Mani Duwadi, Armed Inspector General Raju Aryal, the then Chief of the National Investigation Department Hutaraj Thapa and the then CDO of Kathmandu Chhabilal Rijal for negligence under Section 182. Similarly, departmental action has been recommended against the current Inspector General of Police Dan Bahadur Karki.

It has been recommended to give a warning as per the police regulations based on his background as the Chief of the Kathmandu Valley Police, including his failure to keep weapons and the police office safe.  The report has recommended departmental action against four military officers, five from the Nepal Police and three from the Armed Police Force.

The military officers recommended for action are Assistant Lieutenant General Manoj Kumar Baidwar, Chief of the team deployed to secure the President's House, Sheetal Niwas, Sergeant Diwakar Khadka, Chief of the team deployed to secure the Prime Minister's official residence, Baluwatar, and Chief of the team deployed to secure the Singha Durbar Secretariat, Sergeant Ganesh Khadka.

Khadka was also a member of the District Security Committee. Action has also been recommended against the head of the security team deployed by the army in the Parliament building premises, General Santosh Dhungel.  The commission has also recommended action against the then Operation Commander of Nepal Police, AIG Siddhi Bikram Shah, DIG Om Bahadur Rana, then Kathmandu Police Chief Bishwa Adhikari (currently DIG), then Valley Police SSP Deepshamsher Jabra and Superintendent of Police (SP) Rishiram Kandel.

AIG Narayan Dutt Poudel, DIG Suresh Kumar Shrestha and SP Jeevan KC have been recommended for action from the Armed Police. Poudel was the then Operation Commander while Shrestha was the Kathmandu Brigade Commander of the Armed Police. KC was working in the Disaster Relief Sinamangal.

Those recommended for action from the National Investigation are Krishna Prasad Khanal, Joint Director of the Valley Campaign Division, and Joint Research Director and Kathmandu District Chief Riben Kumar Gachhadar. They have been asked to take action as per the Army, Police, Armed Police and Special Services Act. 

The commission formed to investigate the incidents that took place during the Gen-G movement submitted a report on February 24, recommending that Oli, the writer and Inspector General of Nepal Police Khapung be investigated for criminal offenses. The government had formed a committee to study the report, but it was not made public. 

On Wednesday morning, the online edition of Jana Aastha Weekly made public some important parts of the recommendation section of the report. The 907-page report, obtained by Kantipur in the afternoon, states that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is trying to evade responsibility for the incident by stating that the political leadership cannot be held accountable for the actions of the local administration.

‘Although the local administration has been tried to be held accountable, the country has been forced to bear extensive human losses due to the negligent behavior and unjustified repression policies of the then Prime Minister, including the activities shown in various cases mentioned above,’ the commission said.  The report states that the Prime Minister will be the head of the system and that the Prime Minister will be responsible for taking credit for good deeds and taking credit for bad deeds. It is also stated that since he is the Prime Minister, he will be responsible for the work and actions of subordinate bodies. 

Oli had brought the country's intelligence agency, the National Investigation Department, under the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers during his tenure, saying that he would strengthen it. 'The security arrangements for 23 Bhadra were made based on information collected by the National Investigation Department from various sources, according to which it was estimated that 3 to 5 thousand people could be involved, which proved to be wrong,' the report says. 'It seems that there has been no concrete initiative from the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers to strengthen and enable an important body like the National Investigation Department.'

The report also points out that the incident that took place in Tinkune on 15 Chaitra 2081 was not investigated and the then government did not try to find out the weaknesses of the police administration. ‘No initiative has been taken to improve the weaknesses pointed out in the past,’ the report says. 

The report also points out that the National Security Council, which will be led by the Prime Minister, failed to assess the potential security challenges that could arise the next day after the death of 19 protesters by the evening of 23 Bhadra. 

‘Only a light and verbal decision was made to form a high-level investigation committee to investigate the reality of the incident, including a real assessment of the potential security risks, planned and effective mobilization of security organs, but no written decision was made, so the incident seems to have been taken for granted,’ the report says. ‘The government did not conduct any study on the impact that it could have when it banned social media. Even in the Security Council meeting held on the evening of 23 Bhadra, there was an option to declare a state of emergency and mobilize the army to maintain peace and security, but no concrete decision was taken.’ 

It is said that the council did not take any other concrete decisions regarding the outcome of Bhadra 24. As a result, the report concludes that an incident that the country has never experienced occurred on Bhadra 24. The report states that a person in a position of responsibility like the Prime Minister should have coordinated effectively with the security agencies to resolve the deteriorating situation and minimize the risk, and should have taken initiatives to stop the firing immediately, but this did not happen.  The National Security Council, which will be led by the Prime Minister, failed to assess the potential security challenges that could arise the next day after the death of 19 protesters by the evening of 23 Bhadra. The report also points out that the National Security Council has failed. 

If the army had been mobilized for directive effect in coordination with the military headquarters and with the help of the army, the number of casualties could have been reduced. ‘Despite being aware of the security situation, the Prime Minister does not seem to have taken the necessary initiative in time,’ the report says. 

After the details of the inquiry commission report were leaked throughout the day on Wednesday, Prime Minister Sushila Karki has decided to formally make it public. The Prime Minister’s Press Advisor Ram Rawal said that it has been decided to make two other reports public along with the inquiry commission reports of Bhadra 23 and 24.

‘The Prime Minister has decided to make the report given by the Commission of Inquiry public by archiving it in the library of the Federal Parliament Secretariat,’ he said, ‘It has also been decided to make the report on Nepal Children’s Organization and the Good Governance Roadmap, 2082 public.’

Recommendation for further investigation on 24 Bhadra  The Commission of Inquiry has said that flammable materials were used to burn important structures such as Singha Durbar, Parliament Building, Supreme Court, and President’s Office Sheetal Niwas. There was also a report that petroleum product residues were found in the samples collected during the tests carried out in India.

‘When attacking any office or house, it was seen that the CCTV was first destroyed, the water tank was emptied and demolished, the data center in the government office was demolished and the computer room was attacked, then documents were burned and looted,’ the report said. ‘Finally, gas cylinders in those buildings were set on fire and thrown inside the building, and if that was not available, it was found that bottles of petrol were poured into the house and set on fire.’ 

In the case of Bhadra 24, it has been said that ‘the mandate received by the commission is definite but for a short period’, and it has not been possible to thoroughly investigate the incidents across the country and prove anyone guilty at that time due to lack of time and manpower.

‘Now, the government needs to form an investigation team with experts and immediately reach the accused by comparing it with other available evidence, video clips obtained from the victim and other sources,’ the report says. BP Bhandari, a member of the commission of inquiry, said that the incident of Bhadra 24 was detailed and that it would demand a more extensive investigation.

‘We have said that a short-term investigation is not enough for the incidents that took place across the country at the same time,’ he told Kantipur. However, former police officers say that in the case of Bhadra 24, the deadline for filing cases for crimes such as arson, weapons and ammunition has already passed.  

"Some have a time limit of 6 months, some have a shorter time limit, in such cases on 24 Bhadra, I do not see any legal action being taken unless the police have filed a case first," says former AIG Uttamraj Subedi. Current high-ranking police officers, including Subedi, are arguing that taking action against the then IGP could cause problems in controlling such protests in the future. Stating that there is a legal provision for the Chief District Officer to issue orders regarding firing, he added, "There are situations where officers deployed in the field can use their right to fire to protect themselves or important structures or for self-defense.

"Perhaps this is a suggestion from the inquiry commission, the implementation will be done by a different body. However, I see some difficulties in going through the case process," he told Kantipur, "No law has given the IGP the right to issue orders to fire. The District Security Committee will work at the strategic level, the Central Security Committee at the operational level, and the National Security Committee at the policy level." 

Stating that there is a legal provision for the Chief District Officer to issue orders regarding firing, he added, "There are situations where officers deployed in the field can use their right to fire for the protection of themselves or important structures or for self-defense."

The commission has also recommended awards for six police officers who did excellent work and two citizens who saved the police. The police officers recommended for awards are Kaski DSP Hari Bahadur Basnet, Kalimati Circle DSP Madhu Thapa, Maligaun DSP Sunil Shah, Police Academy DSP Chini Maya Tamang, Janasewa DSP Krishna Kumar Chand, and Thimi DSP Nawaraj Dhungana.

Regarding the citizens, it has been asked to award Shivaram Banda of Hotel Swarnim and Guest House Koteshwor and Geeta Kumari Shah, a watch shop operator in Koteshwor, for helping the police who were chased when vandalism and arson occurred in the police division.  The government itself should make public what comes out through the media, but the next government should not fail in implementing it, says Nepal Gen-G Front coordinator Raksha Bam. “Our demand is that whoever sits in the government should take action without thinking about anything else,” she told Kantipur.