King, Queen pray at Pashupatinath temple

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 6 March: As in the past, the King and Queen paid homage to Lord Pashupatinath on Maha Shibaratri Thursday.
But for the first time, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, after usurping powers of the King as did Jung Bahadur, also worshipped at Nepal’s holiest shrine.
But unlike the Rana prime ministers , Koirala with foreign help is pushing a republic in the 10 April assembly elections which is still unlikely.
CPN-UML General Secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal told an election rally in the capital Thursday both the Congress and Maoists are again attempting to postpone elections fearing a CPN-UML victory.
Nearly 300,000 devotees from home and abroad worshipped at the temple until late evening; the temple was open at three in the morning.
Instead of the King, Guthi Sansthan bid farewell to holymen with state gifts.
Nnnn

Candidates of 21 parties file nominations from capital

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 6 March: Candidates of 21 more political parties Thursday filed
their nominations for the controversial 10 April constituent assembly elections pushed more by foreign governments.
Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, with Indian assistance and connivance, is keenest to hold the poll even without an environment to save his personal image.
Daughter Sutata flew to New Delhi to thank foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee on behalf of her father for his personal intervention with Madesh leaders to untie a political deadlock and enable elections.
Candidates from parties that boycotted the first round of nominations filed their nominations after the Election Commission conceded a government request to re-open nominations mainly to allow terai parties to fight election.
Nominations were filed as Goit group attempted to disrupt filing of nominations through a strike.
Besides the terai parties, conservative Rashtriya Janasakti Party (RJP) and RPP-Nepal decided to participate in the vote they first boycotted during the midst of the 16-day Madesh strike called off by the parties in the south to enable a vote.
RJJP Chairman Surya Bahadur Thapa noled nomination papers from. Dhankuta and Chairmanof RPP-Nepal Kamal Thapa from Kathmandu and Makwanpur.
Sujata Koirala will be challenged by Chairman Upendra Yadav of Madesh Janatantrik Forum (MJF) from Sunsari-5, her father’s constituncy; Yadav is also contesting from a Morang constituency.
Hridesh Tripathi of Terai Madesh Loktantrik Party is contesting from Nawalparasi while Rajendra Mohoto of NSP is contesting from a constituency in Sarlahi.
Bijaya Gachedhar who defected from Nepali Congress to MJF is contesting from Sunsari and Morang.
Nnnn

Motor vehicle reaches Mustang

Kathmandu, 6 March: A motor vehicle reached Mustang for the first time by road Thursday.
Nepal Army built a 91 km track that will be later widened between Beni in Myagdi and directly Mustang accessible only by air across the Annapurna mountain range.
For the first time the extension of the Tibetan plateau to Nepal and the hills have been linked.
The highway has a strategic significance as beijing and Kathmandu attempt to link the Himalayan kingdom and Tibet by raail and road amid Indian suspicious.
Nnnn