Kathmandu, May 5 -- A subcommittee of the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives will re-study the alleged irregularities in the construction of the Bhairahawa-based Gautam Buddha International Airport after its coordinator, Yogesh Bhattarai of the CPN-UML, decided to recuse himself.

Bhattarai agreed to recuse after Rastriya Swatantra Party lawmaker Manish Jha so demanded, saying the presence of the former civil aviation minister in the committee to probe irregularities in the airport construction leads to a conflict of interest. Jha also objected to the proposal of committee chair Rishikesh Pokharel to appoint Achyut Mainali, a UML lawmaker, as Bhattarai's replacement.

As a result, the committee agreed to find the co...