Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha has stated that once the investigation into the recent gold scam is completed, action will be taken against those found responsible.

He emphasized that there is no need to create a high-level probe committee for this investigation because competent and accountable state organizations are already conducting it.

During a press conference held by Press Centre Nepal at Pokhara International Airport today, the Home Minister clarified that “the Central Investigation Bureau is currently handling the investigation. This bureau will identify individuals involved in the scam and ensure they face legal consequences.”

The Home Minister pointed out that “in the past, many high-level probe committees were established for various scams, but their recommendations were often not implemented, rendering their reports meaningless.”

However, it should be noted that it is the government’s responsibility to take action on the recommendations provided by a high-level probe committee. In a Setopati report, according to a member of one of such high-level committees, in a previous gold smuggling case where 33kgs of gold were brought into Nepal, the influential businessmen that the committee noted to take action against were protected through their political reach, as the report submitted by the committee was “hidden by the government and never made public.”

The government has been reluctant to establish a high-level probe committee despite pressure from the opposition, and today waved off the need for a high-level probe committee on the biggest single seizure of smuggled gold.