News Notes (Spotlight Weekly)

Six Maoists Trying To Rob Bank Killed

Security forces successfully foiled the attempt by the Maoists to rob a branch of Agricultural Development Bank in Narayangadh on Friday (January 23). A group of armed Maoists had barged into the branch and taken the security guard there under its control before compelling the branch manager to hand them over the money from the safe. However, security forces including police and army reached the site within a few minutes of getting the information. They, then, surrounded the site and killed six Maoists. The money was also recovered. The security forces also recovered four American pistols, socket bombs, bullets, two pagers and five motorcycles from the site. The Maoists had entered the bank at around 11:15 am. Meanwhile, the government has decided to promote the seven soldiers involved in foiling the Maoist attempt to rob the bank. “The army action has boosted the morale of security forces,” said Colonel Deepak Gurung, spokesperson of the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA). Four of the Maoists were shot by the army men while two others were shot by the police as they were trying to escape through the building’s windows. According to RNA, two of those killed were platoon commanders – Aakash and Aashish – of the people’s militia, one was vice platoon commander Keshav and others two were platoon members Sushil and Rakesh. One person could not be identified. Compiled from reports.

Widows Get Overseas Jobs

The widows of the Armed Police Force (APF) personnel who were killed in the conflict have now been provided with job opportunities overseas. On Sunday (January 25), 15 widows have started their work in Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company. This new initiative has been started jointly by the APF and the SAARC Secretariat with the objective of ensuring financial security of the families of the slain personnel. The company had asked for 20 candidates. Ten widows of APF personnel and 5 of Nepal Police came forward to accept the job voluntarily, it is said. According to APF, it has made arrangements to fly these women for free. It will also send more such widows in future. According to Home Ministry Spokesperson Gopendra Bahadur Pandey, till now 175 APF personnel and 1109 Nepal Police personnel have lost their lives due to conflict. Leading dailies report.

RNA Reveals It Foiled An Attempt To Assassinate Chief

The Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) has revealed that it had foiled an attempt by the Maoists to assassinate army chief General Pyara Jung Thapa by ramming a jeep laden with explosives with his vehicle near his official residence in Pulchowk some two months ago. The Valley Command of the RNA had received information about the deadly plan to assassinate the army chief and similarly target other high officials. They were successful to nab the plotters as well as the vehicle that were to be used in the attack. The jeep, which the RNA took into its custody from a place in New Baneshwore had a specially designed space below the seats where bombs could be put. At a press briefing organized by the RNA on Thursday (January 22), journalists were shown the jeep as well as another car, which was also to be used for similar purposes. RNA spokesperson Colonel Deepak Gurung said that the Maoists were constantly changing the number plates of those vehicles. He said that the Valley Command had also received information that the Maoists were trying to kill 234 high ranking officials based in Kathmandu but was able to foil their plans and smash their network in the valley. Colonel Gurung said that the Maoists were planning to launch a major attack against security installations but added that the army was ready to face such attack any place. Leading dailies report.

Maoist Strength On Decline: Ex-Commander

A former battalion commander of the Maoists has said that the strength of the rebels is on the decline due to diverse political interests. Jaya Bahadur Gharti, a former commander of the Mangalsen battalion of the Maoists, who surrendered before the RNA in July, talked with reporters at a press briefing organized by the army on Thursday. Gharti said that if the Maoists are politically isolated, the problem can be resolved quickly. A native from Rolpa district who was involved with the Maoists ever since the latter began their people’s war, Gharti said that only security operations will not suffice to end the problem. He added that of late the Maoists have been facing serious failures even as they are being exposed politically. He also added that he was most frustrated to see the high level Maoist leaders using the money that has been looted by the cadres for their personal gains. Gharti said that the Maoist people’s army has four brigades in west and three brigades in east whereas there is only a battalion that oversees the valley. A brigade consists of 2000 while a battalion consists of 750 fighters – but due to lack o adequate manpower, a battalion is being handled by only around 400 fighters these days, he said. Gharti also said that the Maoists generally used the same weapons like SLR that they loot from the security forces. “Other modern weapons like AK 47 and M 16 are with them only as showpieces,” Gharti told reporters. He revealed that the fighters are drugged before they launch attack against security forces. Gharti was also involved in the past Maoist attacks in Ghorahi, Kapurkot, Achham, Sandhikharka, Khara and Jumla. Gharti said he had surrendered before the RNA western division in Nepalgunj after he was shot at by the Maoists themselves when he tried to leave the organization. Leading dailies report.

Maoist Put Condition On Monarchy

Krishna Bahadur Mahara, spokesperson of the Maoists and a politburo member, has said that the Maoists are prepared to accept the monarchy if it abandons the leadership of military and sacks ‘pro-palace’ military officers. “Two hundred pro-palace military officers should be sacked and the King should not be the leader of the military,” said Mahara speaking to reporters at the Badakada of Junga Thapachaur in Jajarkot district. “But that is a very difficult thing to achieve,” he added. He also said that currently there was no constitutional monarchy in Nepal as King has military with him. Kantipur daily reports.

Maoists Prohibit Political Activities

The Maoists have declared that they will not allow the activities of other political parties in the areas where they have their own ‘provincial government’. This decision has been made public along with the announcement of their Bheri-Karnali Autonomous People’s Government. Addressing the mass meet organized at Junga Thapachaur of Jajarkot district on Monday to announce the autonomous region, the chief of the region Khadka Bahadur Biswokarma said, “The forces that play reactionary role will be banned.” Maoists have said that the announcement of such region is a preparation for a fierce retaliation. In his message to the meeting Maoist chairman Prachanda has stated, “The announcement of this government is the preparation of retaliation.” The rebels have also claimed that they would attack cities that the state considers safe. Politburo member Suresh Singh said that a big rebellion would occur in near future. Meanwhile, the Maoists have forcefully made the civilians to return to the meeting venue after they ran away following aerial raid from the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA). The casualties from the aerial raid, however, have been reported as quite low compared to initial information. According to journalists who had been in the area, only one person died when the army choppers dropped bombs at a huge mass of people who were en route to the meeting venue. Kantipur daily reports.

US Scholar Doles Out Advice On Nepal Crisis

The best way to tackle the Maoist insurgency is to deal with the security crisis first; democracy will, then, take are of everything else, a scholar from the United States said on Wednesday (January 21). “Deal with the security crisis first and, then, take on the political problems,” said Thomas A Marks, a scholar on internal conflict and author of the Maoist Insurgency Since Vietnam. He recently visited the Maoist heartland in Rolpa district. “However, political parties seem to have cooked their goose,” said Marks. “End of the Maoist problem does not mean the end of all problems. There will, then, be the problem of creating a value system – life after the crisis has to be dealt with,” he said. He regretted that the strength of the Nepali Police Force was too little for maintaining law and order, and even the number of the Royal Nepal Army personnel was ‘insufficient’, given the difficult geo-political terrain of the country. He welcomed the marked improvement in the ‘unity of effort’ and the ‘unity of command’ which was never seen before. The Maoists in Nepal espouse a variety of the Gang of Four ideology, which has been rejected even in China, the country where Maoist idea was born, Marks said. He said that the Maoist movement is led by the political leadership dominated by the Brahmins and the educated elite, which they blamed for all the ills in the country. The people’s militia and the people’s liberation army of the Maoists is led by a non-Brahmin and is dominated by the Magars and other ethnic groups, he said. Local people have absolutely no commitment to the Maoist ideology, he said. However, to survive in the villages, where security forces are conspicuous by their absence, the locals are dependent on the local Maoist cadres, who are only in a handful. The Maoist movement in Nepal, in the early stages, was strongly influenced by the Peruvian Shining Path movement and the Naxalite movement in neighboring India, Marks said. “However, very quickly, the Maoists began to branch out on their own and evolve an authentic Nepali version of Maoism,” he said. “At least 20 percent of some villages in Rolpa have abandoned houses as the inhabitants have constantly been accused of being government spies,” Marks said. The Himalayan Times daily reports.

Gajurel Sent To Two Weeks Of Judicial Remand

The Alander Magistrate Court in Chennai, India has ordered the police to keep Chandra Prakash Gajurel aka Gaurav, a politburo member of the Maoists, in two weeks of further judicial remand after he failed to meet the conditions put forth by the court for releasing him on bail. The court had asked for bail deposit of Rs 16,000 as well as surety from two local residents and land-owners of Chennai, who would have to be responsible in case Gajurel failed to appear before the court twice a week. India had asked the court to extradite Gajurel to Nepal but the court had declined saying his life was not safe there. Gajurel had been arrested from the Chennai airport on August last year as he was about to board a plane flying to Europe on a stolen passport of a British national. Kantipur daily reports.