On a day the hunger strike of the parents of a murdered teenager entered its 46th day, former Prime Minister and vice-chairman of UCPN (Maoist) Baburam Bhattarai objected to the arrest of his party cadre accused in the crime.
Through his two posts on his official Twitter handle, Mr. Bhattarai challenged the government on Sunday to arrest him instead since he was the head of “revolutionary government” during the time. He said the “arrest of Parashuram Poudel for people’s war-era is (a) gross violation of Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA)” as it fell under the jurisdiction of Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).
Mr. Bhattarai’s remarks appear a day after Mr. Poudel was arrested in Chitwan. He is one of the 12 named by the family of Krishna Prasad Adhikari (18) of Gorkha Phujel. According to accounts registered with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the teenager had gone to meet his grandparents in Chitwan in June 2004. Details of the FIR, NHRC and other human rights bodies point to alleged involvement of Maoist cadre in the crime. Another of the accused, Januka Poudel, was a personal assistant to Mr. Bhattarai’s wife, Hisial Yami. Poudel denies her involvement, saying she was on post-natal leave at the time of the crime.
The family of Krishna Prasad believes that he was murdered in relation to a longstanding land dispute in Phuujel.
Meanwhile, the fast-unto-death by the parents of the murdered teenager entered its 46th day on Sunday.
This is the third time this year that the frail couple has been staging a hunger strike demanding justice for their son abducted and murdered allegedly by Maoist cadre in 2004.
The Adhikari couple has said they would not end their fast-unto-death without getting justice since they “felt cheated” by the government and human rights activists and civil society.
