Menika was allegedly abducted and subsequently murdered by Janatantrik Tarai Mukti Morcha (Prithvi group) the same night, on the charge of spying against the armed outfit.
Four days after the incident, locals are trying hard to come to terms with the loss of the young teacher. They are still putting their heads together to guess what went wrong in her life.
Not a single person in the village believes she was a spy. They argue that there must be some other objectives behind the murder and dismiss the armed group´s claim. “We suspect that there must be something else behind the murder. The incident should be investigated thoroughly,” said a local who did not want to be named.
School principal Nanda Kishore Dube also dismisses the armed group´s claim that she was a spy. “I have observed her closely. She can´t be a spy,” says Dube. Menika had been working at the school for the last one and half years. She used to get Rs 1,500 as salary from the school and was making preparations to get teachers´ license.
Police officers investigating the incident also believe that the armed group´s claim was an excuse to give the mysterious murder a new twist. “But we are still collecting information and investigating the incident,” says police inspector Bigyan Basnet.
Local teachers say the extortion drive of the armed groups has posed a grave threat to the whole teaching profession. Four teachers were shot at and two killed in the district in the last six months.
“All this is going right under the nose of the police,” says Parsa President of Nepal Teachers´ Union Devendra Giri.
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