KATHMANDU, April 1: Chairman of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Pushpa Kamal Dahal has expressed bitterness over the attempt of the Nepali community in the US to vilify him during his recent visit to Washington DC for the treatment of his ailing spouse.
Addressing a function organized in the capital to mark the 21st founding anniversary of the Reporters’ Club Nepal on Sunday, Chairman Dahal even asked if it was a crime on his part to reach the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) with the government to stop further bloodshed in the country. Dahal posed the question while referring indirectly to the complaint letter filed by one Tilak Shrestha of Kentucky State University with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), demanding his arrest and investigation as a ‘terrorist’.
Claiming that the liaison committee of Nepali Congress (NC) in the US had reportedly decided to treat him as ‘criminal’, Dahal complained that such a decision had tried to undermine the role he played with the then president of NC and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala to bring the country’s peace process to a logical end after renouncing violence.
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Dahal said that he personally felt bad by the behavior shown by the Nepali community toward him. While urging everyone to be cautious about “the attempt made by autocratic and feudalist forces to raise their heads in Nepal”, Dahal argued that it would only discredit the entire political process if he and Girija Prasad Korala were made to face accusations for reaching the peace agreement.
Shrestha of Kentucky State University had filed a complaint with the FBI against Dahal calling him a ‘terrorist. While urging the US government to consider America’s stand on terrorism, its moral values and internal and international legal obligations regarding terrorism, Shrestha maintained that the insurgency led by Dahal resulted in the death of 17,000 poor Nepalis.
Former Prime Minister Dahal had faced no trouble during his stay as US authorities had issued a ‘no investigation’ circular concerning him. He had decided to go to the US for the treatment of his wife after an assurance from US officials that he would not face any nuisances.
Addressing the same function, Prime Minister KP Oli said that the Nepal Investment Summit had remained quite encouraging and fruitful for infrastructure development in Nepal. “We successfully held the event. The entire nation stood together. We gave a message of focused direction and one voice,” he said. Prime Minister Oli said that cooperation from the foreign development partners was sought as it would take time for Nepal alone to ensure prosperity.
While stating that Nepal had entered the phase of prosperity, Prime Minister Oli also said that the efforts to revive conflict in the country were “frustrated attempts”. “The separatist elements fomenting conflict and division among parties and society are put to an end,” he further said
