The judicial commission probing corruption has warned that it will make public the names of government officials and political appointees who have yet to submit forms detailing their property holdings. Following warnings by the commission, some bureaucrats, parliamentarians and concerned individuals have turned in the forms. Others, however, have challenged the commission's authority and say they will not submit the forms to a judicial probe commission that does not have the legal right to conduct the investigation.

What action will the commission take against such individuals? Sources at the commission told us that some names are powerful individuals within the council of ministers, including Chiranjivi Wagle, Khum Bahadur Khadka, and National Planning Commission member Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat. Some former Chief Justices Nayan Bahadur Khatri and Bishwanath Upadhyaya, and senior advocate Mukunda Regmi were also among some prominent names that had not complied with the rules.

Will the commission dare make public the names of such individuals and initiate action against them? The commission, set up on 18 March this year is to complete its work in six months. So far, it has distributed 35,000 forms, and got back about 4,000 completed forms. The commission says that it has begun to compile a list of individuals who have not submitted details of their property, but has not said when it will make the names public.