“A decision on Singh´s promotion is going to be taken very soon,” Bishnu Rijal, prime minister´s press advisor, told myrepublica.com.
Sources said that the government is going to take such a decision, citing a number of Supreme Court precedents, including June 1 verdict on disappearances, and insufficiency of laws to deal with the charge Singh faces. On June 1 2007, the Supreme Court had directed the government to form a disappearance commission and punish perpetrators as recommended by such a commission.
Human rights community, including the OHCHR-Nepal, have maintained that Singh was not directly involved in the arbitrary detention, torture and disappearances at Bhairavnath Battalion from 2003 to 2004 but he was in the chain of command at the time. Thus, they argue, Singh had chain of command responsibility for the alleged human rights abuses.
Sources argued that the government cannot punish Singh going against the Supreme Court precedents.
Singh´s promotion is on hold since June. The prime minister, in the meantime, also formed a committee headed by Secretary Ram Chandra Man Singh to study the charge against the army general.
“The prime minister was studying a report [prepared by a secretary-level committee] today. Now he has reached the conclusion that there is no reason why Singh should be denied a promotion,” said a source close to the prime minister.
The committee could neither prove the allegation against Singh nor recommend denial of promotion for the army officer who is already second-in-command in the army.
“The government cannot promote other officers without elevating Singh while the government is under compulsion to fill up various posts that have lied vacant for a long time [almost five months],” said Subash Devekota, the press advisor of Defense Minister Bidya Bhandari. “Denying promotion for Singh means punishing him without proving the charge against him,” Devkota argued.
But he said that the government is ready to take action against Singh if the proposed disappearance commission finds him guilty of the charge.
kiran@myrepublica.com
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