Kathmandu— Members of Nepal’s Joint Parliamentary Hearing Committee asserted that the Right to Information Act of 2007 empowers information officers to fulfill legitimate requests, rendering committee discussion unnecessary in such cases. During a meeting on Monday, MPs questioned the need to debate requested information, arguing the committee should instead direct officials to provide it as stipulated by law.

Committee Authority Questioned

Several lawmakers voiced concerns that the committee was overstepping its bounds by considering matters already addressed within existing legal frameworks. Barsha Man Pun stated that parliamentary committees shouldn’t issue instructions on issues explicitly covered by legislation, adding that bringing such topics up for discussion was inappropriate. Kabindra Burlakoti, Nara Bahadur Bista, Prem Prasad Dangal, Padma Kumari Aryal, Madhu Kumar Chaulagain, and others echoed this sentiment, suggesting the committee focus on complaints within its defined scope and avoid revisiting previously discussed issues.

Chairman Directs Secretariat

Committee Chairman Bodh Narayan Shrestha responded to these concerns by instructing the secretariat to deliver the requested notice. He also announced plans for a clarification of the committee’s jurisdictional boundaries, along with an orientation session led by an expert in the first week of September.

The committee will move forward with defining its scope and providing relevant training to ensure future discussions remain within established parameters.

(With inputs from RN)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.