Tulsi Giri, vice chairman of the Council of Ministers during the royal regime, has accused the Rayamajhi Commission of having a political agenda, and said he would have nothing to do with the report.

The Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) summoned Giri last week and interrogated him for nearly two hours. On his way back, Giri challenged the commission to make the report public, and told the reporters present: "The media has the right to ask the government for information."

The report tabled by the Rayamajhi Commission indicates that royal ministers misused funds and were responsible for suppressing the People's Movement.

"Hasn't the prime minister been accused by the Supreme Court before, and didn't the CIAA want to take action against him? How can he take action against me?" fumed Giri. "Does it stop being suppression if the prime minister is involved?"

Giri argued that new laws could not be made to retroactively take action against him for what happened in the past. But he did say that he would trust the verdict of the CIAA over that of the Rayamajhi Commission, because it has a clear mandate and is not influenced by politics.

When asked what he would do if a case were filed against him, Giri answered angrily: "When a constitutional body summons me for an interrogation, I show up. I am a commoner who follows the law, I don't go looking for stones to pelt because I am asked to show up for questioning."

Giri responded angrily when asked about his role in attempting to put down the Jana Andolan last spring, and countered, "So many people died in the tarai, where is the commission to investigate those deaths?"

The CIAA also summoned royal Minister for Education and Sports Radha Krishna Mainali and regional administrators Rabindra Chaktrabarti and Prajapati Koirala.