The ruling coalition has decided to not form a high-level committee for investigation of the recent gold smuggling case.
A meeting of top leaders of the ruling parties held at the prime minister’s residence in Baluwatar on Monday decided that it is not necessary to form a high-level investigation committee on gold smuggling.
According to CPN (Unified Socialist) leader Rajendra Pandey, the meeting concluded that forming a high-level investigation committee would hamper the current investigation being carried out by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police.
“Parliament has been obstructed for a long time. Opposition parties have been demanding a high-level investigation committee. The CIB has been investigating the gold smuggling case. There was discussion on whether it is necessary in this situation,” he said. The leaders were of the view that demanding a high-level committee meant obstructing and hampering the current investigation into the case, he added.
According to Pandey, the meeting also discussed former speaker and CPN (Maoist Center) Vice-chairman Krishna Bahadur Mahara’s involvement in gold smuggling.
The top leaders inquired about the issue with Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha. Responding to the queries, Shrestha said that he would be able to talk about it only after the investigation reaches a certain point as the case was still under investigation.
