Government accused of selective prosecution of Nepali Congress leaders
KATHMANDU, AUGUST 11
Nepali Congress lawmakers took exception to the arrest of their fellow lawmaker Sunil Sharma on the charge of obtaining fake academic certificate.
Kathmandu District Court ordered the investigating agency to probe Sharma without keeping him in custody. According to Joint Government Attorney at Kathmandu District Attorney Office Achyut Mani Neupane, the court ordered Sharma's release saying that the detectives had received complaint against Sharma last year but had not acted then. Hence, Sharma should be probed without requiring him to be in police custody.
Sharma was released from custody in the evening. The lawmaker who runs hospitals in Biratnagar and Kathmandu was elected from Morang Constituency No 3 in the last parliamentary election.
Nepali Congress lawmaker Uday Shumsher Rana, who was among the 19 lawmakers who spoke during the Executive Committee of NC Parliamentary Party, said the government was selectively targeting NC lawmakers and leaders in the name of investigation. Krishna Bahadur Mahara has been accused of involvement in the gold smuggling case and UML lawmaker Gokul Baskota was also accused of corruption. Another UML leader Ram Bahadur Thapa has also been accused in the fake Bhutanese refugee scam, but the government has not investigated them. It is only targeting NC leaders, he added.
Another NC lawmaker Sarita Prasai said then prime minister KP Sharma Oli's personal secretary and Chief of the Commission for the investigation of Abuse of Authority Prem Kumar Rai was accused of receiving money from fake Bhutanese refugee scammers in his car and yet no probe was initiated against him. Only Sunil Sharma was targeted. She also said that UML leader Ram Bahadur Thapa and his wife were accused in the fake Bhutanese refugee scam, but the detectives had not quizzed them yet. The government is acting as if the CPN-MC is squeaky clean and the NC leaders are corrupt. NC, being the largest party in the current coalition government should not tolerate this. She said the government was using its power of probe UML leaders as a tool to subdue the UML and the UML was also trying to bargain with the CPN-MC.
"Sharma was arrested after he demanded resignation of Home Minister Naryan Kaji Shrestha and Finance Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat. This shows that the current probe against Sharma is to exact revenge on him," Prasai added. She said police could have justified its probe against Sharma had they carried it out seven years ago, when an allegation against him was first raised. According to Prasai, most of the 19 lawmakers who spoke during the meeting strongly objected to lawmaker Sharma's arrest.
Meanwhile, Nepali Congress Chief Whip Ramesh Lekhak issued a press release, saying that NC lawmakers strongly object to the arrest of lawmaker Sharma.
Lawmakers said Sharma's arrested was unprecedented and objectionable, the NC added. The party said that the NC PP will make public its stance on Sharma's arrest on Sunday after the PP meeting.
Meanwhile, Sharma told media persons that his academic certificate was genuine. Stating that he was among the top taxpayers involved in education and health sector business, Sharma said the CPN-MC-led government was trying to harass native business people. Sharma said he could be targeted or harassed again but he would not stop raising his voice against misrule and corruption.
A version of this article appears in the print on August 12, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
