This is an unfortunate situation for the rule of law. Such a style undermines trust and confidence in the rule of law. Ultimately, the state itself descends into anarchy.
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An example of how much people under the umbrella of power and power in Nepal are above the law has been shown again in the case of Leelaballab Adhikari, the former minister of Koshi. The official who went to Japan with three youths by issuing a fake identity card in the name of the ministry where he was a minister, became a fake head of office and was arrested on charges of human trafficking.
However, even though a case was registered in the district court against 11 people who accompanied the minister and were involved in this scheme, the Kathmandu District Public Prosecutor's Office granted immunity to the minister. That's why the proverb is made - law for the small, law for the big.
Why did the public prosecutor, who is directly under the government, give immunity to the officer? The simple answer to the question is - he is an MP and former minister of the ruling party UML. This step of the law enforcement agency under the constitution which considers everyone equal is unacceptable, there is no alternative to correct it through the court process.
The police, who investigated this incident of human trafficking in Japan, gave a report against 12 people, including the officer, to prosecute them for human trafficking. However, the public prosecutor's office has filed a case against 11 people besides the officer. Due to this, the officers who are facing serious charges have been acquitted without facing the court on the recommendation of the public prosecutor.
It does not mean that any person accused should not be acquitted, but the right to donate is useless to the government. Until yesterday, this Lilaballab officer was an individual's fault, by obstructing the investigation on him, now the government has become a participant in this fault.
Kanchan Devkota of Rasuwa and Dawa Sherpa and Janak Rai of Khotang flew to Japan on October 13 under the leadership of the then Minister Adhikari in the plan of the gang. However, the document was returned by Japan Immigration after it was found to be suspicious. The officials who arrived at Tribhuvan International Airport on October 18 escaped with normal documents and three youths were arrested.
Eight more people were arrested because of their statements. The gang extorted money from the youth, who was sent to Japan with the help of the authorities, with a plan to hide them in Japan. The investigation revealed that Rs.10 lakhs/10 lakhs were collected from Devkota and Rai and Rs.11 lakhs and 55 thousand from Sherpa.
It has also been revealed that the money collected was distributed by those involved in the setting up of flying to Japan from making fake government ID cards. Before flying to Japan, the officer had taken a group photo with Mahesh Pandey of the gang, Yograj Gautam alias Gopal, around the Tribhuvan Airport.
Those who went together were turned away by immigration. However, since the officer was found innocent before the court process, the additional protection of the state has been revealed to him. The fact that the person who led the process of taking someone unrelated to the designated program in Japan, and prosecuting others, does not reflect the fair treatment of the state.
It is seen that the state is putting additional hypnosis on not only the officials, but also on people like Congress Vice Chairman and MP Dhanraj Gurung, UML MP Rishikesh Pokharel, who are involved in cooperative fraud. According to the allegations against them, serious investigation is not going on.
This is an unfortunate situation for the rule of law. Such a style undermines trust and confidence in the rule of law. Ultimately, the state itself descends into anarchy. If the state moves in that direction during the time of the powerful two-thirds government, which has made good governance the main mantra, anarchy will be closer.
The hope that the powerful government will show strong self-reliance to establish the definition of the rule of law has faded with the Adhikari case. Along with this, the moral ground of speeches made by the prime minister and ministers in the name of good governance has also weakened.
If we want to bring back that moral force, if we want to confirm that there is a rule of law in the country, there should be a situation where the officials are also prosecuted. Past references suggest such a path. For this, a complaint can be registered again at the police or district attorney's office or there is a way to get an investigation order against him from the court.
By whatever legal process, the government's illegal protection to the officer must be revoked. Only then can trust in the rule of law survive. Otherwise, this topic remains limited to speech topics.
