Nepal’s interim government, led by former Chief Justice Sushila Karki, has established a panel to look into the deadly violence during anti-corruption protests earlier this month, which resulted in 74 deaths and led to the resignation of Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, a minister confirmed on Monday.
The protests, initially sparked by young people protesting rampant corruption and unemployment, turned into the deadliest civil unrest in Nepal in decades. Over 2,100 individuals were injured, and demonstrators set fire to key government buildings, including the prime minister’s office, the Supreme Court, and the parliament.
They also targeted luxury hotels, malls, and showrooms, which they claimed were owned by those connected to corrupt politicians.
Rameshwore Khanal, who is now overseeing the finance ministry under Karki’s leadership, revealed that a three-member investigative panel, chaired by retired judge Gauri Bahadur Karki, has been given three months to complete its inquiry.
“It will investigate … the loss of life and property during the protests, excesses by both sides and people involved in the acts of arson and vandalism during the movement,” Khanal said.
Former Prime Minister Oli, in a social media post, also called for a thorough investigation into the violence. He insisted that his government did not instruct the police to open fire on protesters, adding that the protests had been infiltrated by outsiders. According to Oli, the police lacked the weapons used in the shooting of the crowd.
Karki is the former chairman of a special court that hears corruption cases in Nepal and has a reputation for honesty and integrity.
