Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal has said that former energy minister Deepak Khadka has fled.
In an interview published in the Naya Patrika Daily on Sunday, Minister Aryal said that the former energy minister fled after the government initiated investigations into the assets of prominent leaders. He, however, did not explicitly name Khadka.
"We are now fully activating the Department of Money Laundering Investigation. Investigations into major leaders have already begun. Some have even started fleeing. The then-energy minister has already fled. Others are also trying to escape," he said.
During the Gen Z movement on September 8-9, Deepak Khadka, a Nepali Congress leader, was the energy minister. During the protests, demonstrators set fire to Khadka’s house in Budhanilkantha, too.
It was Khadka’s insistence, while serving as energy minister in the then KP Sharma Oli-led government, that led to the removal of Kulman Ghising, the then-head of Nepal Electricity Authority, a few months before his term ended.
Ghising was appointed as the energy minister in the interim government led by Sushila Karki after the Gen Z movement. He is also handling the responsibilities of the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure.
Minister Aryal said that instead of forming a separate commission or mechanism for corruption, the work is being done through existing state mechanisms.
"First, we work through existing state mechanisms. When these mechanisms prove ineffective, another mechanism will be created. We are closely monitoring this," he said.
While claiming that leaders are fleeing, the home minister also mentioned that measures are being explored to prevent their escape.
"We are studying whether there are provisions to stop them from fleeing. There is no difficulty in conducting preliminary investigations. In particular, the Department of Money Laundering Investigation looks into detailed asset records," he said. "After reviewing those details, they will need to be brought in for statements, required to appear. When filing a case, they will be arrested and taken along."
Home Minister Aryal also expressed anger toward former prime mMinister KP Sharma Oli, accusing Oli’s "criminal negligence" of causing the destruction on September 9.
When asked, "Former prime minister KP Sharma Oli and others have accused the government of attempting to make arrests and avoid elections. Is the government doing so?" Aryal responded, "He has a devilish tendency, always trying to provoke. His past is the same. Even today, he hasn’t changed."
He said that the wave of public outrage and rebellion against bad governance toppled Oli.
"Gen Z ousted him. He didn’t even realize that. Instead, his mindset of treating protestors like terrorists is devilish. The government will keep a close watch on that tendency. Someone with a devil in their mind considers everyone else wrong. Everyone has understood that he is only trying to provoke the situation."
