Fake refugees scam: DPM Shrestha vows government will not bow to any pressure

Kathmandu: Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha has said the government is firmly and daringly moving ahead to eliminating corruption and bad governance which stand as the primary obstacles towards the journey of prosperity.

He said this while responding to the queries raised by the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee members regarding the ongoing investigation in the context of the fake Bhutanese refugee scandal, in a meeting of the committee today.

DPM Shrestha said the government is determined to take action against those found guilty in this scam. ‘There is not going to be any partiality in the investigation and the government does not bow to whatever pressures might be there. The probe will be firmly carried out to the point where it is required. The government is steadfast in prosecuting the culprits,’ he said.

Stating the police are working day and night for probing the fake Bhutanese refugee scandal, the DPM and Home Minister reiterated that from the beginning of the investigation, police have been strongly instructed to remain free from any political pressure or unwanted influences.

‘From the beginning, the police have moved ahead the investigation in an earnest and fair manner becoming cautious that no innocent person is implicated and no unnecessary suspicion or damage is caused in anyone’s public image,’ he said and expressed the government’s determination to bringing to justice the culprits based on facts and evidence.

DPM Shrestha also reiterated the government’s commitment to put to an end the network of corruption and commission, saying it has ruined the country. The first responsibility of the present government is to achieve prosperity by maintaining good governance and all should rise above partisan politics to build the nation, he added.

Minister for Federal Affairs and General Administration Aman Lal Modi said the Ministry is doing home work to depute the chief administrative officer to several local levels where the posts are lying vacant. Committee member Gagan Kumar Thapa suggested working in small group in the committee in the context of pursuing bills with priority while Hit Raj Pandey urged the committee to carry out its works in a result-oriented way.

Rabi Lamichhane suggested the committee to incorporate the study and directives on corruption control given by the committee before this. He also stressed that the committee should also make the government to obey the committee’s directives.

Raghuji Panta stressed on the need of making the committee’s works and discussions effective by preparing an action plan while Bishwo Prakash Sharma said the committee should work towards promoting good governance and economic prosperity by making the government accountable to the people.

Dilendra Prasad Badu, Ram Kumar Rai, Dr. Chanda Karki, Hridayaram Thani, Sarbendra Nath Shukla, Prakash Adhikari, Ishwori Neupane, Sarita Prasain, Ambika Basnet among the committee members suggested that the committee should work for the interests of the nation and the people under any circumstances. Committee senior most member Chitra Bahadur KC welcomed the members to the meeting before this.

After an introduction session in which the members introduced themselves, they were briefed about the jurisdiction of the committee. The Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Federal Affairs and General Administration, the Public Service Commission, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) and the Election Commission fall under the committee’s work jurisdiction.

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