The continued secrecy surrounding the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)’s investigation report on the September 8 and 9 incidents is deeply concerning. A constitutional body entrusted with defending human rights and democratic accountability cannot afford to mirror the culture of opacity that has long weakened public institutions in Nepal. The longer the report remains hidden, the more serious the questions become about the NHRC’s independence, credibility and commitment to the public’s right to know. Nepal’s history is filled with examples of governments and state institutions suppressing uncomfortable truths in the name of political convenience. Despite repeated political transformations and promises of democratic reform, the tendency to conceal information from citizens persists. Such secrecy does not protect democracy; it erodes it. Good governance cannot survive where transparency is absent.
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The government-formed judicial commission led by former judge Gauri Bahadur Karki had already drawn criticism for failing to complete its work on time and for allegedly avoiding accountability regarding those involved in the violence and destruction of September 9. Public confidence in that commission weakened further after concerns emerged over the chair’s publicly expressed political biases on social media. For this reason, many expected the NHRC’s investigation to provide a more credible, impartial and independent account of the events. NHRC officials themselves publicly stated that the report had been completed and would soon be submitted to the government. Those assurances created hope that the truth would finally be brought into the open and that pressure would build for action against those responsible. Yet months later, the report remains undisclosed. This silence is damaging. It creates suspicion that the NHRC is facing political pressure or is unwilling to confront powerful actors. Whether true or not, such perceptions alone are enough to weaken public faith in both the NHRC and the state. An institution confident in the integrity of its investigation should have no reason to hide its findings from the public.
The issue is larger than a single report. The credibility of the NHRC itself is at stake. After years of criticism during the royal regime of King Gyanendra, the NHRC had slowly begun rebuilding trust nationally and internationally. Hiding a report of major public importance now risks reversing that progress. Human rights institutions earn their authority not from secrecy, but from public confidence, moral independence and transparency. Attempts to suppress truth rarely succeed. The public already learned important details of the Karki Commission report through media leaks despite official efforts to keep it hidden. The same will likely happen again. Continued secrecy will only deepen public distrust and fuel further speculation. The NHRC should therefore immediately release its full investigation report. Citizens have a democratic right to know what happened, who was responsible, and what accountability measures are necessary. Transparency is not a threat to democracy — it is one of its strongest protections.
