Nepal probe commission to summon ex-PM Oli over Gen Z protests

Kathmandu: A commission appointed by Nepal’s interim government to probe alleged excessive use of force during the September 8–9 Gen Z movement will summon ousted prime minister K P Sharma Oli for clarification, officials said on Thursday.

At least 19 youths, who were demonstrating against the Oli government in Kathmandu, were killed in police firing on Sep 8, with the total death toll from the two days of unrest reaching 77 people nationwide.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) and other bodies have alleged that security forces used disproportionate and unlawful force, including firing live ammunition indiscriminately at protesters. The agitation had led to the ouster of Oli’s coalition government.

The commission chief, Gauri Bahadur Karki, on Thursday told reporters that preparations were underway to seek clarification from CPN-UML chairperson and former prime minister Oli after the process of recording the statement of then home minister Ramesh Lekhak is completed.

Karki said the commission is working as per a plan to submit its final report within the extended deadline of January 21.

The three-member panel was constituted through a Cabinet decision on September 21.

However, Oli has publicly stated that he would not appear before the commission, questioning its legitimacy and impartiality.

The commission also lifted travel restrictions imposed on Lekhak, a Nepali Congress leader.

The restrictions, which barred Lekhak from travelling abroad and from leaving the Kathmandu Valley without the commission’s approval, were withdrawn following a meeting of the panel, an official said.

Lekhak had appeared before the commission on Monday and recorded his statement.

In his statement, Lekhak had said that he accepted full moral responsibility for the deaths and other losses of September 8.

However, he claimed that the vandalism and arson on September 9 across the country were not a spontaneous escalation but the result of “a planned conspiracy against democracy and the nation”.