Kathmandu, January 16
The Impeachment Recommendation Committee, formed to recommend on impeachment of then suspended CIAA Chief Commissioner Lokman Singh Karki, appeared a divided house on Monday. Its members were not on the same page on whether or not to recommend impeachment of Karki, days after the Supreme Court fired him, stating that he was not eligible for the constitutional position.
At Monday’s meeting of the committee, lawmakers from the Nepali Congress said there’s no need to carry on with the impeachment process against Karki as he has already lost his job.
While pressing the impeachment process ahead, the committee has to take Karki’s statement. It has to ask him whether or not you should be fired on the basis of these charges,” committee member and NC lawmaker Dipak Kuinkel pointed. It will be pointless to ask this question to a person, who has already been relieved of his post.
While lawmakers from the CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre, who registered the impeachment motion against Karki, said the committee should take more time to arrive at a conclusion. Some stressed the need to carry on with the impeachment process.
With committee members disagreeing on the future course, the meeting decided to engage in legal consultations on the matter. Committee member Revati Raman Bhandari said they have decided to summon Attorney-General, Law Secretary and chair of the Law Commission at Tuesday’s committee meeting.
The impeachment process will not move ahead if the committee suggests that it’s not necessary to carry the process forward. If the Parliament passes the impeachment motion, Karki will be ineligible for constitutional positions.
