NHRC commissioner Pathak says she is treated like dirt

ANKIT ADHIKARI

KATHMANDU AUG. 30

 One of the members of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has claimed she is “insecure” at the office.

NHRC member Lila Pathak called up the Post on Sunday evening and said she was “intimidated” by around 17 NHRC staffers on Aug. 23 at her office cabin and that she had not been present in the office ever since. She said she has reported the incident to the Home Minister and the Prime Minister demanding security so that she could resume her work.

On the afternoon of Aug. 23, 17 officials of the human rights watchdog including Bed Prasad Bhattarai, Subarna Karmacharya, Achyut Acharya and Bhanu Bhakta Acharya, according to Pathak, stormed into her cabin and intimidated her saying “We don’t want a commissioner like you. We want you to get out of your cabin so that we could padlock it.”

“I had raised my voice against irregularities in provident fund of the NHRC staffers and opposed its decision to raise salary,” said Pathak. “While the salary of the same-level government staffers has not been increased, NHRC can’t hike the pays of its officials on its own. I opposed it saying it was unethical, which made everyone furious.” “While the 17 bullied me for an hour in my office, no one intervened or helped me,” she lamented. “Although I lodged a written complaint with the Chairman, no action has been taken against the culprits. This proves other officials too are involved in the conspiracy to demoralise me, ultimately compelling me to resign. I don’t feel secure in the office that ignored my complaint.”

However, according to NHRC Chairman Kedar Nath Upadhyaya, a probe into the matter is underway. “Complaints of intimidation were filed both by the delegation of 17 officials as well as Pathak,” he said.

Published in The Kathmandu Post -- August 31