Central Working Committee (CWC) member of Nepali Congress and former Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand, who is in police custody on the charge of defrauding Nepali citizens of millions of rupees by playing a role in making fake Bhutanese refugees, has said that he does not know what documents were submitted to the cabinet.
He said in his statement to the police:
I don't remember now what documents were submitted. The Nepal government work execution regulations has specified the jurisdiction of ministers, secretaries and other officials. The minister has also delegated some of his powers to the secretary. Hence, the responsibility of protecting the records of the ministry has also been assigned.
His statement
Among the defendants, I know Tech Narayan Pandey because he is the Secretary of the Government of Nepal, Narendra KC was my private secretary, Top Bahadur Rayamajhi is a known figure because he is a member of the Constituent Assembly, a member of the House of Representatives and a Deputy Prime Minister. I worked as Home Minister from July 13, 2021 to December 26, 2022. When I was the Minister of Home Affairs, I faithfully carried out the duties of a minister, including maintaining peace and security in the country in line with the Constitution and the law.
The numbers and letters written in the recovered black diary are mine. Besides, two more black and brown color diaries and a sheet-38 containing property details are also mine.
The report submitted by the task-force formed under the coordination of Bal Krishna Panthi to find permanent and long-term solutions to the problem of Bhutanese refugees may be known to the same task force as well as the relevant agencies and departments.
Looking at the documents received with the Ref. No. 843 of the Ministry of Home Affairs dated 2023-05-09, in the above report presented by the committee on the date 2019/10/18, in the report signed by two persons, namely coordinator Bal Krishna Panthi and expert Ganesh Bahadur KC, the then minister, studied and implemented the report in the name of the then secretary. It seems that it has been determined to move forward, and the report given by the task force chaired by former Assistant Secretary Bal Krishna Panthi, which was formed to find permanent solutions to the Bhutanese refugee problem, was taken during the time of the then Home Minister.
Following further discussions on the report of the task-force formed to find permanent solutions to the Bhutanese refugee problem, I approved it on 2021-11- 28.
According to the Nepal government work execution regulations, the concerned department raises the issue, the secretary presents the proposal, the minister approves it and the Council of Ministers passes the proposal.
A proposal was submitted to the Council of Ministers regarding measures to solve the problem of Bhutanese refugees. I do not remember now what documents were submitted. The Nepal government work execution regulations has specified the jurisdictions of ministers, secretaries and other officials. The Minister has also delegated some of his powers to the Secretary. Therefore, the responsibility of protecting the records of the ministry is also assigned, there cannot be different treatment on the same subject of the same report. The ministry's documents, reports, contracts, etc., are separated by the organization that keeps various records, this is the administrative responsibility of the ministry.
The previous government submitted a proposal to the Council of Ministers regarding the problems and solutions to the Bhutanese refugees when the then Home Minister read the report of the task-force formed to seek permanent solutions to the Bhutanese refugees and forwarded it for implementation. The proposal was continued. It is well known that after I became the Home Minister, I have been giving instructions to the high officials and responsible officers of the Ministry of Home Affairs for peace and order in the country.
In this context, I have also been giving instructions to Bhutanese or Tibetan refugees not to involve in any undue activities.
It is the responsibility of the government to provide humane treatment to the refugees. The last time international donor agencies stopped supporting the Bhutanese refugees. Taking this into consideration, the refugees will also be able to study in government or public schools. The Council of Ministers has passed a proposal regarding the problems and solutions related to Bhutanese refugees to make their lives easier by making arrangements for land leases for collective farming to produce agricultural products in accordance with the law and with the approval of the local level.
This proposal is made with good intentions for the management of Bhutanese refugees. In addition to stopping undesirable activities in the name of refugees, the ministry also issued circulars at various times so as not to confuse anyone.
In this context, a notice was issued to all the camp residents of Bhutanese refugee camp Beldangi from District Administration Office.
During the time of COVID-19, I took the initiative to vaccinate Bhutanese refugees and Tibetan refugees even when Nepali citizenship was required to vaccinate them. It was also praised by the international community.
