End of a violent campaign in Nepal
Kavre, Nepal: The Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist cadres continued to disrupt election campaigns of opposition parties at various districts across the country and kept on manhandling opposition party activists despite the instructions from the party leadership to “act with restraint” in the run up to the Constituent Assembly (CA) polls.
Nepali Congress (NC) and Communist Party of Nepal -UML have indicated that the cadres of Maoist affiliated Young Communist League (YCL) manhandled and subsequently injured their party leaders, candidates and activists in various places including Okhaldhunga, Kavre, Sindhupalchowk and Gulmi districts. Two NC candidates and other activists were injured when the former rebels attacked a NC election assembly at Shrichawr in Okhaldhunga district at around 10 this morning. The NC informed that two of its candidates for the CA polls – Bal Krishna Dahal, candidate from constituency 1 of the district under first-past-the-post system and Goma KC, candidate from the district under proportional representation system – were injured when a group of Maoist cadres led by Tanka Bahadur Thapa and Ek Bahadur Thapa attacked the election assembly this morning. The district leadership of the NC also informed that some of its activists have been out of contact since the Maoist attack. Similarly, UML informed that six of its activists were injured when YCL cadres attacked the party’s door-to-door campaign at Bhuskot of Phulsingkot VDC in Sindhupalchowk district this morning. Six YCL cadres along with district sub-in-charge Dambar Bahadur Shrestha were arrested by the police along with khukuris on charges of attacking the UML activists. However, Maoist claimed that the YCL cadres retaliated after the UML activist attacked them. Likewise, eight UML activists were injured when YCL cadres repeatedly attacked the party’s election campaign at Anekot VDC in Kavre district on Sunday night and Monday morning. The YCL men attacked and injured the UML activists as they were launching voters’ education programme in the district on Sunday, UML informed. The YCL cadres attacked the UML cadres on Monday as well despite the Maoist district leadership direction to stop attacking cadres of other parties. Nine UML activists were injured in today’s attack. One of the injured is in critical condition and is receiving treatment at BNB hospital while the rest of the injured are undergoing treatment at Dhulikhel ditrict hospital. Similarly, Maoist cadres Sunday torched two vehicles of Ang Thawa Sherpa, a candidate of Ramechhap district constituency-1 for the CA polls. Meanwhile, the Maoist cadres stopped general people on the way while they were heading to participate in an electoral assembly of the UML in Sinduli district constituency-2, UML said. In another incident, Maoist cadres today captured and manhandled three UML activists at Dhulkot VDC and Rajtal VDC of Gulmi district. Poll campaign ends Political parties in Nepal ended their formal campaign at midnight on Monday, 48 hours before the historic Constituent Assembly elections slated for April 10. The Election Commission said it had completed all preparations, including postings of officials and transportation of the ballot papers and other poll related materials. Most of the international observers have already made it to the field. The former US President, Jimmy Carter, who is among the international bigwigs observing the Nepal polls, arrived here on Monday afternoon. Despite all these preparations and mobilisation of over 100,000 security personnel, concerns remain on the security front. There have been over 200 poll-related clashes in the last one month, involving the Maoists, NC and the UML. The NC has filed 92 cases of attacks by the Maoists in the election commission and the UML has filed 96 cases. The Maoists have made a counter-claim of 59 attacks by the NC and UML against their cadres. There are also growing complaints of the Maoists combatants coming out of the United Nations-monitored cantonments and interfering with the poll campaign violating the provisions of the peace agreement. According to the tripartite agreement between the UN, Maoists and the government, the state army and the Maoists army cannot leave the cantonments during the elections. On Monday, explosions occurred in Kathmandu, Birjung and Sunsari, compounding voters’ fear. Source: South Asia Media Net and The Hindu |
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