National 2 (Spotlight Weekly)

Negligence Or Security Lapse?

The slaying of the first chief of the Armed Police Force, Krishna Mohan Shrestha, sends a wrong picture about the security situation in Nepal

By A CORRESSPONDENT

It was foggy Sunday morning when Armed Police Force chief Krishna Mohan Shrestha, along with his wife and bodyguard, set out from their Balkhu residence at 7:15am for their regular morning walk. Twenty minutes later, along the Ring Road in Bagdole, Lalitpur, a group of masked attackers opened fire at close range, killing all three on the spot.

Nudup (left) and Krishna Mohan Shrestha : Victims of terror

Shrestha's wife, Nudup Shrestha, was a teacher at the Lincoln School in Kathmandu. The bodyguard, sub-inspector Surya Regmi, had just returned after undergoing commando training in India. According to reports, police have arrested Krishna Hari Sainju, who has been described as the leader of the group of assailants. He was taken to hospital with a bullet injury and was being interrogated.

Shrestha became the senior-most police officer killed by Maoist rebels in their seven-year war against the state. Two years ago Senior Superintendent of Police Parameswar Sijapati was killed by the Maoists in Dang when he was on regular security supervision.

The Armed Police Force was set up a few years ago to contain the Maoist violence. So Shrestha was an obvious target of the rebels. How rational and reasonable was it for the armed police chief to go for a walk on a foggy morning without proper security? That was the question many people started asking when news of the killings spread like wildfire.

Security experts describe Shrestha's decision to take his wife along on his morning walk as a gross negligence. "Had Shrestha been killed on duty or after having taken full security, one could have blamed security lapse," said one security analyst. "How could a man responsible for the security of the nation be so negligent? Shrestha was killed because of his negligence, but his innocent wife also paid the price," he said.

Shrestha was born in Chainpur of Sankhuwasabha district, 400 km east of Kathmandu. Having joined the police force in 1970 as an inspector, Shrestha was Additional Inspector General of Police before he was promoted and transferred to head the newly formed Armed Police Force three years ago.

Among friends and colleagues, he established himself as simple, honest and popular person. "Shrestha was a brilliant police officer who never hurt anyone in his dealings. He was always friendly to all his colleagues," said one colleague. "Whenever the couple saw people crossing the street, the Shrestha duo always explained the risks of crossing the street at early morning. The tragedy was that the couple could not find anyone to rescue them."

After the regular police force incurred heavy losses, the government led by Girija Prasad Koirala proposed setting up the Armed Police Force as the second line of defense followed by the Royal Nepalese Army. Had the government not set up the new force and promoted Shrestha to chief, he would have retired a few years ago.

Shrestha's overconfidence or compromise with personal security took his life. "Had he taken certain precautions, the tragedy could have been averted," said the security analyst.

Whether in times of war or peace, the man who led a strong force of 20,000 soldiers equipped with modern and sophisticated arms should have moved under strict security cover. "In the armed forces, you cannot find freedom and you have to give up so many things for personal security. In India, the prime minister, ministers and many other politicians are given Black Cat commando-level security. Senior police and army officers must restrict their movements," said a retired army officer. "In the battle with Maoists over the last seven years, we have lost many police and soldiers because of sheer negligence of security. We have not taken the incidents seriously, so similar kinds of mistakes have created havoc."

This was not the first well-planned Maoist assault against security personnel and civilian targets in Kathmandu valley. Last year, a group of Maoist cadres threw a petrol bomb at the residence of an army general in Kaldhara, in the heart of the city. Just a month ago, a police constable was shot dead on duty at Kalimati. A week ago, the Maoists attacked the community police station in Tikhedeval, less than a kilometer east of the spot where the Shrestha couple and their bodyguard were killed.

A helicopter pilot had a close shave at Bhatbhateni when three young unidentified gunmen tried to attack him. The situation is abnormal, as the Maoist has already shown that they have capability and strength to attack any place at any time.

In the case of Shrestha, the Maoists had already given him a threat by bombing his ancestral home in Chainpur a year ago. The killing has sent a bad message about the security situation in the capital city Kathmandu.

"No country can provide hundred percent security to all its citizens. When the country is in a civil-war-like situation, all concerned individuals must cooperate with the police to restore normalcy," said a senior police officer. "We do not receive much-needed information regarding the activities of the Maoists. Since large sections of population are terrorized, nobody gives any information about their neighborhood."

The killing of the armed police chief has evidently bolstered those who have been trying to prove that Nepalese security forces are incapable of handling the Maoist insurgency. "Because of the negligence of Shrestha, we have lost an intelligent police officer and gave a strong point to those bent on showing the weakness of Nepalese security system," said a security expert.

Whatever the circumstances, the cold-blooded triple murder has sent shock waves across society. For the police, it is an irretrievable loss. As the internal and external factors behind the Maoist insurgency continue to exist, it seems peace and normalcy is still far way. Many more Nepalese may end up sacrificing their lives, not for their own cause.