KATHMANDU: The arrest of former Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak over the suppression of Gen-Z protests in September last year was hotly debated during the first meeting of the federal parliament held on Thursday, following the March 5 parliamentary elections.
As leaders of the CPN-UML and Nepali Congress criticised the government over the arrests, Rabi Lamichhane, President of the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), defended the move, saying it served justice for the martyrs’ families. “The martyrs’ mothers deserve the first right to justice, and that should not be considered revenge,” Lamichhane said.
Lamichhane stated that the ruling party would not pursue a campaign of revenge against opposition parties despite its numerical strength in parliament. “No one will be treated differently based on ideology anymore,” he said.
He added that laws had previously been amended to protect those in power and to implicate the opposition. “Such wrong practices will be corrected as soon as possible. There will be no place for arrogance and revenge against the opposition,” he said.
During the meeting, CPN-UML leaders criticised the arrest of Oli and Lekhak, arguing it was the part of a larger conspiracy. Parliamentary Party leader of UML Ram Bahadur Thapa ‘Badal’ questioned why they were arrested “illegally”, calling it part of a broader conspiracy.
He also blamed state machinery — including the Nepal Army, bureaucracy, and the previous government led by then Prime Minister Sushila Karki — as well as the activities of the Barbara Foundation, a non-governmental organisation, and the use of misinformation and disinformation through artificial intelligence, algorithms, and Goebbels-style propaganda for the RSP’s massive victory.
Nepali Congress lawmaker Bishma Raj Amdennge questioned the impartiality of the High-Level Commission, criticising the leaked report for its silence on the incidents of September 9, when public and private property was heavily damaged. During the two-day protest on September 8 and 9 last year, several people were killed in police shootings, while protestors damaged public and private properties massively in the following day.
“Why was the Parliament building reduced to ashes? Why was Singha Durbar, the main administrative center of Nepal’s government, burned? Who set them on fire?” he asked, stressing that the incidents of September 8 and 9 should be examined in detail, one by one. (IANS)
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