Mukta Bahadur Bhandari and Bal Bahadur Sinjali sustained serious injuries and have been admitted to Bharatpur District Hospital while Mukta Bahadur Bhandari and Santa Bahadur Sinjali, who sustained minor injuries, are being treated at Jutpani.[break]
This is the first time since a Special Committee took over control and command of the former Maoist fighters in January that the combatants, who are not supposed to leave their cantonments without authorization, have engaged in a clash with civilians. It is not clear whether they had authorization to come out of the cantonment.
The Maoists wanted the playground to turn it into a cricket pitch, something objected to by local youths who wanted to hold football matches on the grounds starting Monday. Both sides stuck to their guns and the clash ensued.
Jutpani-based Gaidakhola Youth Club had prepared the grounds for football matches between teams of the married and the unmarried.
Raju Lama of the club said the combatants became angry when the local youths adhered to their stance that the playground should not be turned into a cricket ground until the football matches were over.
Following the clash, combatants from the Dinesh Ramji Smriti Brigade at Shaktikhor Cantonment organized a demonstration as a show of strength and to terrorize local people, eyewitnesses said.
Locals obstructed vehicular movement along the East-West Highway for three hours from Monday afternoon, protesting what they said was atrocity by the combatants. They also submitted a memorandum to Chitwan District Administration Office demanding legal action against those involved in beating up the local youths. They have announced that they will cordon off the office on Wednesday.
Spokesperson of the cantonment Janak Bista said efforts are underway to settle the dispute but accused political parties of trying to magnify the incident and give it political color. He said the combatants beat up the locals after they manhandled a brigade commander who had arrived at the scene to try to settle the dispute. Regretting the incident, Bista vowed to cooperate with police.
NC seeks PM´s reply
Nepali Congress (NC) has demanded an explanation from Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal over incidents of ´human rights violation´ by Maoist combatants in and around the cantonments.
Speaking during special hour at the legislature-parliament on Monday, NC lawmaker Dr Ram Sharan Mahat, who is also a member of the Special Committee that commands and controls the Maoist combatants, accused the government of being a mere spectator even though the combatants are involved in human rights violations.
“Following the exit of UNMIN, a code of conduct had been formulated for monitoring the cantonments. It is now evident that nobody is monitoring the cantonments,” said Dr Mahat, referring to the recent fracas between the combatants and locals at Jutpani of Shaktikhor cantonment.
“It is a grave human rights violation to encroach on public land and attack locals,” he said asking for clarification from the prime minister in his capacity as coordinator of the Special Committee.
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