Kathmandu: By this time it has become almost clear that the Koirala faction of the congress instigated one Lawyer Saroj Kumar Singh to proceed with the writ petition against Surya Nath Upadhyaya- the Chief of the Commission for Investigation of abuse and authority, the CIAA apparently to harass the latter to the extent that he dares not to send “yet another” letter in the name of the Prime Minister regarding the Lauda deal.

Left affiliated newspapers hint of this possibility.

Indeed the very timing of the writ petition against Upadhyaya from a declared congress activist and a lawyer at the moment supports the theory that the whole affair had been accomplished to put pressure on the personality investigating the most infamous Lauda air deal.

However, surprising is the fact that the CIAA which apparently preferred to serve yet another letter in the name of the Prime Minister is keeping a stoic silence on the matter. The new stance acquired by the CIAA coincides with the filing of the writ petition of Mr. Singh against the CIAA Commissioner who is being alleged to have amassed astronomical amount of wealth while finalising some water resources deal with a foreign company while he was secretary at the water resources ministry.

Lay men wish to link the silence of the CIAA to the alleged embezzlement in the said water resources deal. If not then why the CIAA is consuming so much time in “studying” the very wordings and the contents of the letter sent by the Prime Minister in response to the CIAAs first letter.

A rumor is still alive and kicking in Kathmandu intellectual circle that suggests that the Lauda investigating authority apparently is not happy with Koirala’s response and plan to serve yet another “strong worded” letter demanding some more clarifications from the latter.

High placed sources claim that Commissioner Upadhyaya is determined even to summon the Prime Minister in person for “interrogation” purposes.

Speculations abound in Kathmandu which hints towards a “compromise” formulae in between the Prime Minister and the Commissioner.

The end result, if that happens, then is very much understandable.

This notwithstanding, constitutional experts maintain that the CIAA possess the authority to grill the Prime Minister. “Since the Cabinet has finally approved the foreign currency for the procurement of the Lauda air, the Prime Minister as the chief of the cabinet can’t escape from interrogation under the constitutional cover that he enjoys at the moment”, said Basu Dev Sharma, a former Commissioner of the CIAA.

Be that as it may, much will now depend on how the CIAA Commissioner has taken the writ petition filed against him and what measures he will devise to defend himself from the onslaught will perhaps goad his future actions against the Prime Minister. Undoubtedly, if the Commissioner trembles with fear then the whole Lauda affair and the investigation accomplished so far will all go to the dogs and this is what his detractors, mainly those close to the Koirala congress, wish at the moment.

Unconfirmed reports say that the entire members of the congressmen close to Koirala curse defense minister Mahesh Acharya whose ” recommendation” remained instrumental in installing Commissioner Upadhyaya to the current post at the CIAA.

One can understand the Prime Minister’s mental agony caused by a person picked up by him. It is perhaps too late now.