In the process, Poudel sustained severe injuries to his head and was recently ferried to Kathmandu for further treatment. He eventually succumbed to his injuries early on Saturday. It is indeed a damning evidence of the state of law and order in the country that even prisons can be so easily infiltrated and its inmates mercilessly beaten. We strongly urge the government to look into the security lapses in Chitwan District Prison and bring the perpetrators of such a dastardly attack to book.
At the same time, we have deep reservations about the Nepali Congress Central Working Committee calling for nationwide bandas on Friday and Monday in response to Poudel’s killing. What the NC should instead have done is called on the government to look into the matter. It could even have asked for the sacking of the irresponsible security personnel, even those higher up, for the December 6 incident. That would befit the party that likes to call itself the custodian of democracy in the country. The call for two days of bandas was particularly baffling as the NC itself has formed a committee under party General Secretary Krishna Prasad Sitaula to probe the incident. In other words, NC chose to inconvenience the daily lives of hundreds of thousands of Nepalis. Further, the practice of political parties demanding that their slain cadres be declared martyrs is an insult to the real martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the greater good of the country.
Another objectionable aspect of the Saturday banda was the burning of tires on the streets of Chitwan and Kathmandu, which had thankfully gone out of fashion after the indefinite strike called by the Maoists in May, 2010. This had come about on the back of healthcare personnel’s withering criticism of tire burning which releases noxious gases into the air. We would like to reiterate our position that no one should, or have the right to, organize disruptive activities like bandas which not only unnecessarily add to the difficulties of common Nepalis but also pose as a great health hazard.
The Chitwan prison incident was sadly not an isolated case of youth wings of political parties looking to settle old scores. In this case, Poudel was in custodial remand for his alleged involvement in the death of Sanjay Lama, a Youth Association supporter, back in August. Lama’s murder, in turn, seems to have been motivated by the killing of Poudel’s brother, Gopi, by Youth Association members three years ago.
Not to mince words, this series of incidents smacks of a gang war and speaks volumes about the inability of the political parties to keep a tab on their own sister wings. Banda is an undemocratic practice and no one, under any pretext, should resort to it. The NC should realize its folly and call off Monday’s planned banda.
Related story
Butwal banda called off
-1778925320.webp)
