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From ground zero of the Sept 8-9 GenZ protests, a sensitive piece of news is spreading. Per reports, government authorities are working to do away with the remains of hundreds of vehicles that went up in flames in Singhadurbar, courtesy of some elements that targeted vital organs of the state, private businesses and major media outlets on Sept 9, a day after the killing of GenZ protesters in police firing. In fact, the Mechanical Division under the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport has already begun the large-scale removal and ‘management’ of the debris from Singhadurbar, the federal government secretariat. After collecting the remains, the tentative plan is to prepare a field inspection report of the burned vehicles by involving police personnel and then inviting tender bids for selling it all as scrap. This piece of information comes amid reports that ‘authorities concerned’ appear pretty much unconcerned when it comes to preserving evidence at the incident sites by restricting unauthorized entry and taking measures to weather-proof the sites for a credible and objective-oriented investigation that might help establish the identities of the elements involved and their true motives one day. This kind of swift action on ground zero, rarely seen on other occasions except in the immediate aftermath of tragedies like the royal palace massacre, coincides with reports in some international media outlets that the acts of arson and vandalism seen in Nepal at that time may not have been ‘spontaneous’, that much planning may have gone into these acts. Quotes from police sources mentioned in the reports suggest that these acts might not have been based on conspiracy theories and/or figments of imagination. Granted that state organs had become almost synonymous with corruption, nepotism, malgovernance, procrastination and a myriad other ills, and the citizenry had genuine grievances against them all. Still, key GenZ figures themselves had appealed against violence and have distanced themselves from the acts of arson and vandalism. Who all were behind the acts that turned the infrastructure built with the taxpayer’s blood, sweat, toil, tears and hard-earned monies into ashes? What were the main motives of those elements? A no-nonsense investigation is necessary to find answers to questions like these. Protection and preservation of the sites is a must for such a probe that may turn out to be a lengthy process. As for the large-scale removal of the debris that will be tantamount to destroying the evidence, the ‘Herculean task’ can wait, at least till the completion of the probe.