The disciplinary commission of the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party has decided to seek further evidence, including a possible technical examination of an audio recording, as it investigates allegations of violence and threats against a woman involving party central committee member and lawmaker Khagendra Sunar.
The commission formed an investigation panel after the party asked it to look into the allegations. The panel subsequently wrote to Sunar seeking his response to the allegations and questions raised publicly. In his written reply, Sunar denied that the audio recording was his and alleged that he was the target of a conspiracy.
Hari Chandra Bhattarai, deputy chief and spokesperson of the disciplinary commission and coordinator of the investigation panel, said Sunar had rejected the allegations in writing.
“We wrote to him about the audio recording, explaining that such a recording had surfaced and questions had been raised, and asked him to respond to the allegations,” Bhattarai said. “He denied them. We will now have to look for other evidence. Had he accepted the allegations, the process could have moved forward differently. His denial means the investigation needs to go deeper.”
The allegations were reported by Jana Aastha in a story headlined ‘RSP lawmaker Khagendra Sunar embroiled in another controversy: Threats to kill former minister, extortion (with audio and banking transaction details)’.
The audio published with the report appears to capture Sunar verbally abusing a woman in obscene language, demanding money and threatening to kill her. The report also alleged that he had lured the woman with the promise of marriage, made explicit videos and photographs of her, and then used them to blackmail her.
Following publication of the report, RSP general secretary Bipin Acharya assigned the matter to the party’s disciplinary commission, saying the allegations were serious and required investigation.
In a statement, Acharya said allegations reported in the media involving conduct that undermined a woman’s dignity, improper pressure, unwanted threats and suspicious financial transactions were “extremely serious and sensitive”. The party would not treat such allegations lightly, he said.
The party also instructed Sunar not to attend any programmes in his capacity as a central committee member or member of parliament while the matter was being investigated.
The disciplinary commission subsequently formed a six-member investigation panel, coordinated by Bhattarai. Its members are Ram Chandra Karki, Sushila Simkhada, Santosh Acharya, Santosh Bishunkhe and Upendra Nandan Timilsina. The panel visited the Jana Aastha office and obtained evidence, including the audio recording attributed to Sunar.
The panel has also written to News 24 Television seeking the recording of an interview given by the woman on its programme ‘Sidha Kura’. Bhattarai said the panel had yet to receive the audio.
The investigation has become more complex because Sunar has denied the allegations and the woman, in her televised interview, said no violence had taken place. A panel member said the circumstances had raised questions about whether the woman was now retracting or contradicting her earlier allegations.
“Given his denial and the interview by the woman said to be the victim, it is also possible that the alleged victim has become hostile,” the member said, adding that the investigation would therefore need to be more thorough.
Bhattarai said the panel would also examine whether the allegations against Sunar were substantiated at all.
“If he did not say what is attributed to him, his reputation has been damaged,” Bhattarai said. “The committee has a responsibility to examine the matter closely. An interview with the woman said to be the victim has also emerged, so the investigation must be conducted independently.”
Panel members have informally discussed whether the audio should undergo technical analysis following Sunar’s denial. Bhattarai said the committee would meet in the coming days to decide how to proceed.
“Once we receive the audio of the woman’s interview from News 24, the investigation panel will meet to decide whether technical examination is necessary,” he said. “We asked Sunar to respond in writing to the questions raised publicly. We will also need to question him about the audio, and the panel will decide on that at its meeting.”
Bhattarai said a technical examination, if deemed necessary, could prolong the investigation.
Sunar did not answer phone calls or respond to messages seeking his comment on the written reply he submitted to the party.