WITHOUT F EAR OR FAVOUR Nepal’s largest selling English daily Vol XXIX No. 22 | 10 pages | Rs.5 O O Printed simultaneously in Kathmandu, Biratnagar, Bharatpur and Nepalgunj 34.0 C 1.0 C Friday, March 12, 2021 | 28-11-2077 Nepalgunj Jumla Madhav Nepal back to UML, but his coexistence with Oli won’t be easy Oli is the party chair and prime minister but Nepal and his allies vow to fight the former’s unilateral ways in the party and any attempts to sideline his old rival. TIKA R PRADHAN KATHMANDU, MARCH 11 After Sunday’s Supreme Court decision revived the CPN-UML and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) as different parties, Madhav Kumar Nepal had said he would suffer the most from the verdict. For someone who had led the party for more than 15 years and had been the prime minister of the country, the court decision has become a bitter pill to swallow. POST FILE PHOTO But Nepal had no other option-- Madhav Kumar Nepal even though his supporters within the POST PHOTO: ELITE JOSHI party are putting up a brave face For Nepal, finding a rightful place A paratrooper prepares to land with the Nepal Army headquarters in the background during a show at Tundikhel in Kathmandu on Thursday and have said they fight against in the party itself is going to be a marking the Army day, which coincides with the Mahashivaratri festival. Oli’s ways. struggle. “After today’s meeting of Oli has not met him and has not Standing Committee members, called any party meetings following we are determined to take any Sunday’s court decision even though [necessary] step in the party to he has been holding talks with Janata counter whatever Oli comes up Samajbadi Party leaders to save the INSIDE Congress to wait for Oli, with that is against us,” said a government. Standing Committee member UML General Secretary Ishwar close to Nepal following a fac- Pokhrel has said they would give a Badi people end tional meeting on Thursday. “It chance for Nepal and Khanal, the sen- protest after 16 days Janata Samajbadi and all depends on how Oli will ior party leaders, to self-criticise. treats us.” >> Continued on page 2 SURKHET: The Badi people residing in four districts of Karnali Province have ended their protest after the pro- vincial government pledged to Maoist Centre moves address their demands concerning their rehabilitation and reintegra- tion. More than 400 people from the marginalised Badi community from before making its own Surkhet, Dailekh, Kalikot and Jajarkot district had been staging a sit-in outside the Chief Minister’s An alternative government with the Nepali Congress at the Office in Birendranagar, the provin- cial capital, for the past 16 days helm only if the Maoist Centre withdraws support to Oli demanding that the government allot land plots and introduce welfare and he fails to strike a deal with Janata Samajbadi Party. schemes for them. They ended their protest on Wednesday following a five-point agreement with the provin- cial government. Dal Rawal, social development minister for Karnali Province, said the provincial govern- ment has agreed, among other things, to coordinate with the federal govern- ment to allot land plots for building homes to the Badi people and provide grants up to Rs 1 million for skills development and income-generating businesses. (Details on Pg 2) People with comorbidities yet to get vaccinated KATHMANDU: Sixty-one-year-old Sushila Khatiwada, a resident of Bharatpur Metropolitan City- 4,Chitwan, was planning to take the Covid-19 vaccine in the second phase of the immunisation campaign. Khatiwada, who is suffering from multiple comorbidities--high blood POST FILE PHOTO pressure, asthma, diabetes, and thy- Only if KP Sharma Oli fails to retain his position will the Congress try to form the government. roid malfunction, is at high risk of severe illness if she catches Covid-19. ANIL GIRI If the Nepali Congress were to form “We were planning to immunise our KATHMANDU, MARCH 11 the next government, it would need mother during the second phase of the support of both the Maoist Centre the immunisation drive, but we are With 63 seats in the 275-member House with its 53 parliamentarians in the told that priority criteria were of Representatives, the Nepali lower house and the Janata Samajbadi changed,” her son Krishna Prasad, Congress could lead the new govern- Party with its 34 (two suspended). told the Post. “Authorities should pri- ment. But not just yet as there has For the moment, however, Congress oritise people like my mother, who been no headway in that direction. seems to be in no hurry to take a have underlying conditions.” As of The party has, therefore, for the decisive step. Thursday, 3,012 people have died due moment opted for a strategy to “There is ample time to discuss the to coronavirus infections in the coun- watch the moves of Prime Minister government formation,” Congress try. The Health Ministry said that of KP Sharma Oli, Janata Samajbadi General Secretary Purna Bahadur the deceased, over 80 percent were Party and the Communist Party of Khadka told the Post. “And in my opin- found to have comorbidities. However, Nepal (Maoist Centre) on government ion, for two weeks, there will be no officials concerned did not bother to formation. concrete development or agreement.” prioritise the vaccination of people If the Maoist Centre decides not to Nepali Congress leaders are also underlying conditions. (Details on Pg 3) withdraw its support to the prime aware that attempts are on to give minister, who chairs the UML, or if continuity to the incumbent Oli the Janata Samajbadi Party decides to government with the support of Nepal’s tea exports thrive support the CPN-UML government in Maoist Centre or there could be the case of the Maoist Centre with- another prime ministerial candidate despite Covid-19 pandemic drawing the support it had given in from within the UML and the Maoist KAKARBHITTA: Gorkha Tea Estate in February 2018 when Oli became prime Centre. Ilam, Fikkal has been exporting minister, Nepali Congress leading the According to a number of Congress orthodox tea to Germany since 2009. government will be a moot point. leaders, UML leaders Bishnu Poudel, The tea is sold under the brand name But given this uncertainty, Congress Subas Nembang, Shanker Pokhrel, Sundarpani, which means beautiful President Sher Bahadur Deuba has Ghanshyam Bhusal, Yogesh Bhattarai water in Nepali, in 125 German cities. personally deployed his close aides and Maoist Centre’s Barshaman Pun, Even amid the Covid-19-related like Prakash Sharan Mahat, the par- Janardan Sharma are in talks to give restrictions last year, shipments of ty’s joint secretary, Gyanendra continuity to the incumbent Oli gov- orthodox tea increased. According to Bahadur Karki and Ramesh Lekhak to ernment if possible and keep the customs statistics, Nepal dispatched hold talks with Oli, Samajbadi party unity between the two parties intact orthodox tea worth Rs52.7 million to and the Maoist Centre. even though they have separate identi- Germany alone in the first six Deuba himself is also talking infor- ties now. months of the current fiscal year mally with the Janata Samajbadi Leaders of the UML and the Maoist (mid-July 2020 to mid-January 2021). leadership through Sharat Singh Centre confirmed to the Post on condi- In the last fiscal year 2019-20, exports Bhandari, a senior Samajbadi leader, tion of anonymity that such talks are to Germany were valued at Rs46.5 according to two Nepali Congress indeed going on. million. (Details on Pg 5) leaders privy to the developments. >> Continued on page 2 C M Y K FRIDAY, MARCH 12, 2021 | 02 NATIONAL Badi people end protest after 16 days Madhav Nepal back ... >> Continued from page 1 “Thapa could even be elevated to In communist party parlance this the post of party vice-chairman which Provincial government of Karnali has pledged to address the demands concerning their rehabilitation and reintegration. means they have to admit that they has been vacant since Bidya Devi made a mistake. Bhandari became President,” the KALENDRA SEJUWAL Oli’s press adviser Surya Thapa had Standing Committee member said. SURKHET, MARCH 11 even stronger words. At present, Bamdev Gautam, “I recall the face of criminals who Yubaraj Gyawali, Bhim Rawal and The Badi people residing in four dis- declared that Prime Minister and Asta Laxmi Shakya are the vice- tricts of Karnali Province have ended party chair KP Sharma Oli had been chairs. Gyawali, Rawal and Shakya their protest after the provincial gov- ousted even as a party member four are supporters of Nepal while Gautam ernment pledged to address their times,” Thapa tweeted on Tuesday. has remained neutral. demands concerning their rehabilita- “We cannot forget the immoral moves But whatever Oli does, Nepal’s sup- tion and reintegration. of these people who tried their best to porters say they will not give up with- More than 400 people from the mar- make the government with a two- out a fight. ginalised Badi community from thirds majority a failure.” “We cannot just watch if Oli keeps Surkhet, Dailekh, Kalikot and Jajarkot Questions on how the Nepal-led fac- on adding outsiders to the party com- districts had been camping outside tion of the UML will cope with Oli’s mittees to ensure his majority,” said the Chief Minister’s Office in dominance in the CPN-UML after its Panta. “We will have to form parallel Birendranagar, the provincial capital, three years of struggle against him in committees and continue our activi- for the past 16 days demanding that the now defunct Nepal Communist ties throughout the nation.” the government allot land plots and Party (NCP) are natural.