Government Counsel Argues for Investigation into KP Sharma Oli and Ramesh Lekhak in Habeas Corpus Hearing

Kathmandu. Government attorneys have presented their arguments regarding the habeas corpus writ filed by CPN-UML Chairman and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak.

Deputy Attorney General Sanjeev Raj Regmi argued that the arrest of Oli and Lekhak should be viewed as a necessary step for investigation based on their responsibilities while leading the government. The hearing on the habeas corpus writ continued on Monday before a joint bench of Supreme Court Justices Binod Sharma and Sunil Kumar Pokharel.

'The context of the incident on Bhadra 23 must be examined, whether it was personal or collective,' Regmi stated in court. 'The investigation was initiated based on the observation that those in responsible positions were negligent in failing to order against the use of force on that day.'

'The government has taken the report of the Gauri Bahadur Karki inquiry commission as the basis for the first information of the incident,' he told the bench. 'Currently, both individuals have been arrested only for investigation, not prosecuted. Bullets were fired on Bhadra 23; should the Prime Minister and Home Minister not exercise guardianship?' he questioned, adding that the arrest was made because the commission's report deemed the excessive use of force as an act of negligence.

Regmi further argued that the Supreme Court had previously established a precedent in the case filed by Sunil Ranjan Singh regarding the Gaur incident, where it was determined that individuals responsible for extrajudicial killings could also be investigated. He stated that investigations would now proceed procedurally rather than through traditional methods.

Regarding whether Oli and Lekhak should be investigated, Deputy Attorney General Regmi cited the precedent set by the Supreme Court in the case of the extrajudicial killing of Kumar Paudel, where the court had ordered that CDOs and DIGs be brought under investigation and held accountable.