freedom1 Forum has learnt that Acting Commissioner Shree Acharya and Commissioner Sabita Bhandari at the National Information Commission recently visited the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) and secretly read the report of the Lamsal Commission on investigation of properties held by public figures. The NIC, reached at the OPMCM after the latter's phone call, was allowed only to read the report but not copy or make notes about it. Moreover, they were inspected during the study on the report. freedom1 Forum takes it as a submissive act of the NIC to secretly read the report and hide the information that freedom1 Forum had sought long as per the RTI Act 2007. "With this, the NIC has devalued its own image," freedom1 Chairman Taranath Dahal said, adding, "The NIC officials restricted their own rights. It would shrink the regime of the RTI in the country." Earlier, the Forum had drawn the attention of the National Information Commission (NIC) about its inaction relating to the information sought with the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) despite five months passed since it appealed to it (NIC) and the OPMCM. Writing a letter to the NIC on May 17, 2013, FF Chairman Taranath Dahal complained that he was deprived of information despite the passage of five months of the appeal in it. In the letter, he said, "Clause 10 (4) of the Right to Information Act 2007 has mentioned 'NIC needs to take final decision within 60 days of information application appealed to it.' On December 26, 2012, the FF had appealed in the NIC making defendant to the OPMCPM for it denied information for long. Then the NIC directed the OPMCM to publicize the report submitted by the Judicial Probe Commission on Property formed in 2057 BS, and led by the then Justice of the Supreme Court Bhairav Prasad Lamsal but in vain. Chairman Dahal had first sought the information with the OPMCM on October 11, 2012 as per Clause 3 of the RTI Act 2007. Through the application, the following information was sought: I. Details of all annexes of a report submitted to the Office of the Prime minister by a property judicial probe commission led by then Supreme Court justice Bhairav Prasad Lamsal in 2058 BS. II. Who were accused and filed cases by the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority for amassing properties with undisclosed sources, and details of the charge.
Freedom Forum is a prominent non-governmental organization in Nepal dedicated to institutionalizing democracy, protecting and promoting human rights, press freedom, freedom of expression, right to information, promoting audit accountability, open and accountable budget, public finance reforms, citizen engagement in public finance management and citizen participation in audit. Established in February 2005, the organization emerged in response to the political turmoil following Former King Gyanendra’s coup dated February 1, 2005, which imposed severe restrictions on media and democratic rights. A group of media professionals, legal experts, and academics founded Freedom Forum to safeguard Nepal’s hard-earned democratic freedoms during this repressive period.
