“Politicization of criminal cases is a crime”

Published On: May 16, 2023 04:30 PM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

KATHMANDU, May 16: The Accountability Watch Group has objected to the fact that an amendment bill has been presented in parliament to politicize criminal cases.

The group issued a statement on Monday and objected to the amendment bill registered in parliament “to institutionalize impunity.”

The government registered a bill in parliament on May 11 to amend the National Criminal Procedure Code 2017 with the aim of withdrawing the cases of political party leaders and activists who are undergoing trial for criminal offenses pending in courts.

The intention of the bill is to grant immunity to Resham Chaudhary and others who were convicted for the brutal murder of eight people, including police personnel and a toddler. Chaudhary and others are currently serving their sentences in the Tikapur incident.

According to the statement issued by Charan Prasai, the provision by the government to dismiss the case even if the case is filed in any level of court is a violation of the constitution and the law to give immunity to those who are being punished for serious criminal offenses. The registration of the bill has been termed as a black mark on political parties advocating the rule of law.

It is stated in the statement that the suppression of the judicial rights of the victims by cloaking the crime in the cloak of politics is not forgivable in a democracy, saying that the government is in the process of protecting and institutionalizing impunity by amending the law against the public commitment to guarantee good governance.

“It is objectionable that the state that has the responsibility to protect the rights of citizens but unfortunately is repeatedly enacting perpetrator-friendly laws,” the statement indicates, “Protecting crimes by abusing the parliamentary majority to maintain power is against the universal principles of Human Rights, to which Nepal is a agreeing party, and it is the opinion of the committee that it is against the Constitution of Nepal, even the fundamental rights of crime victims.”