ROLPA, Sept 17: Bir Bahadur Gharti, the chairman of Thabang Rural Municipality who was abducted by the cadres of Netra Bikram Chand's CPN Maoist, has been released by his abductors on Sunday.
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Gharti was handed over to journalists at Bhanbhane, Dhawang of Rolpa Municipality, according to local journalist and human rights worker Khem Budha. As informed by Dijan Bhattarai, the chief District Officer of Rolpa, a group of journalists along with Chairperson Gharti reached District Police Office at around 11 pm. "Freed Gharti has been handed over to the Rolpa Municipality Mayor Purna KC and he will be reunited with his family soon."
According to Gharti, the abductors made him walk for miles in the hills. "They did all of this because they wanted to stop CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal from reaching the village," said Gharti. It had been speculated that the purpose of the abudction was to foil the Maoist Center's rally in the rural municipality. The abductors even asked him to resign his post, according to Gharti. They also told him not to make any crucial decision in the rural municipality without consulting them. "They have demanded that police release their jailed comrades Keshav Bahadur Bada, the so-called Rapti bureau in-charge of the Chand-led party," Gharti added.
