Gold Smuggling Case: Opp to lift Parliament obstruction after govt agrees to form probe panel

The government had earlier refused to order a high-level probe into the case of seizure of 100 kg gold on July 19 after it was cleared by the Customs. The seizure was made just about 1 km from the international airport.

While the government eventually succumbed, there are still hitches regarding timing and modality of the probe. “While UML wants the probe to begin right away, the government, especially the Finance Minister and the Home Minister, want it to begin only after the ongoing investigation by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) submits its report,” one of the participants in Monday night’s meeting told The Indian Express.

The formation of the judicial probe may put “moral pressure” on the two ministers to quit as soon as the committee begins its work, the leader quoted above said. Therefore, he added, the two are “in favour of it (high-level probe) being delayed”.

While UML agreed to let the House resume from Tuesday, the confusion in the ruling coalition delayed its resumption.

Leader of Opposition in Parliament, K P Oli, did not participate in Tuesday’s follow-up meeting, held to give final shape on the composition, terms of reference and functioning of the proposed probe panel. He cited “health reasons” to skip the meeting.

There are nearly half-a-dozen big scams that have been detected, allegedly involving the incumbent and all former Prime Ministers over the last 16 years. The vulnerability of the top leaders increased after last month’s Supreme Court verdict that literally annulled the 17-year-old Cabinet decision and practice that no PM or minister could be investigated for corruption or abuse of authority by giving them a “policy cover”.

The CIB, however, had to retract its move to interrogate former PMs Baburam Bhattarai and Madhav Nepal at the last minute in another land scam, which involves allegedly transferring government land to fictitious trust or tenants by the Cabinets each had headed.

“In the face of public pressure, the two former PMs were respectfully interrogated by a team of CIB, led by the agency’s chief, Kiran Bajracharya, in their own residences, with full political understanding that they will not be framed in the case,” a senior police officer told The Indian Express.