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| Kathmandu Saturday March 30, 2002 Chaitra 17, 2058. |
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PM escorts King on Maoist area tour
By Kosmos Biswokarma
KATHMANDU, March 29:In what is being seen here as a key
development in the nation’s fight against Maoist rebels, His Majesty King Gyanendra,
along with Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and Royal Nepal Army chief Gen. Prajwalla
Shumsher Rana, departed Friday on a whirlwind tour of four Maoist-affected districts in
western and mid-western Nepal.
The chopper carrying the King and the PM took off mid-day
Friday and are scheduled to come back to the capital on Sunday, a highly placed government
source told The Kathmandu Post. But the official refused to divulge over the details of
the programme.
However, political observers here are noting this tour for
its significance – the King has never undertaken such a visit before to the Maoist
areas. Doing so now, could have implications on Nepal’s present political scenario,
they say.
But government officials tried to keep the visit a low-key
affair, saying, "This is just a regular visit to these areas." However, those
close to the Royal Palace claim that the Constitutional Monarch decided to embark on the
visit as he cannot remain indifferent to the people’s problem. "If the
politicians cannot visit the places and solve citizens’ problems, the King would
definitely try to solve them," a source said.
The officials informed that the visit would take the King and
the PM to Rolpa, Achham and Salyan districts in mid-western Nepal and Gorkha district in
western Nepal. The monarch will be stationed at Nepalgunj with daily travels to the
affected districts. These districts are some of the hardest hit by the Maoist insurgency,
which has already claimed nearly 3,000 lives.
This is the first time that King Gyanendra and PM Deuba are
visiting these districts, where the Maoists have a strong hold. They are scheduled to go
to the people, besides visiting the security personnel to boost their morale in their
fight against the Maoists, a source said.
The visit has a special significance as it comes at a time
when the opposition political parties are boycotting the proceedings of the parliament,
protesting against the remarks of the army chief who blamed politicians for the country’s
woes.
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