Home Minister Sudan Gurung has said that according to the current constitution and laws of Nepal, the death penalty cannot be given while there are also demands for the death penalty after the heinous crime committed against three-year-old Baraki. After the incident, protests are being held in different parts of the country and there is a demand for strict action against the culprits. In the demonstration in Kathmandu, slogans such as 'hang the rapists' were raised. Meanwhile, Home Minister Gurung has made public his views on the incident and said that he understands the anger and the demand for death penalty among the citizens. But he mentioned that Article 16 of the Constitution of Nepal forbids the creation of a law to impose the death penalty.
"I also understand the anger over the demand for the death penalty. But Article 16 of the Constitution of Nepal prohibits making a law to impose the death penalty," said Gurung. Referring to Nepal's international commitment to abolish the death penalty, he said that there is no legal situation in which the state can immediately impose the death penalty based on the impulse of the incident.
According to Gurung, the main responsibility of the home administration now is to conduct a fair and robust investigation of the incident. He said that the investigation should be based on evidence so that no weakness is allowed in the investigation, the guilty are not allowed to escape and innocent people are not trapped. Gurung has informed that after the question of negligence on the part of the police was raised at the initial stage of the incident, the investigation and action process has also been initiated against the concerned police officer. He also said that four more people have been arrested for investigation based on the complaint given by Garima's parents.
Gurung said that the government has also taken forward the work of making the existing legal system more effective regarding heinous crimes against women and children. According to him, Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sobita Gautam has prioritized the issue of removing the legal obstacles in such crimes after coming to the government and is preparing to take the necessary law amendment draft to the parliamentary process.
He also requested not to politicize sensitive incidents and not to conduct a 'media trial' based on unconfirmed information. He said that although citizens should raise questions about the government and alert them if there is any weakness, activities that affect the investigation and judicial process can ultimately weaken the justice itself. "Now our first priority should be justice to dignity," Gurung said, "evidence should be safe, investigation should be fair and scientific, the guilty should not escape and the innocent should not be caught."
Gurung said that the government is committed to ensure the maximum justice that the law can give in the incident and to build a stronger legal and institutional system to prevent such crimes in the future. In the end, he said, "Let's turn anger into the power of justice. Let's bring justice to dignity. Let's make Nepal safe for every daughter."
