First majority communist government installed in Nepali; other details

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 16 Aug: Nepal’s first elected majority communist government was installed by the CA Friday; The coalition government led by CPN (Maoist) that left the jungle and its secure shelter in India, protected by the New Delhi government, has a comfortable working majority.
Prachanda was elected Friday as the first all-powerful prime minister of a republican Nepal with 464 votes; his only rival Sher Bahadur Deuba collected only 113 votes of his Nepali Congress Party.
Three of 25 parties in the CA boycotted the vote.
The first minority communist government of Man Mohan Adhikari, also the first elected communist government in the world, was toppled by the Nepali Congress in the mid 1990’s.
The Prachanda government can’t be toppled so easily as the one-time elected CA, is not a parliament with a fixed tenure.
Differences on power-sharing in the three-party alliance that elected Prachanda surfaced even before the vote.
MJF demanded the foreign ministry portfolio allocated to the CPN-UML, according to the CPN-UML.
The alliance is meeting again Saturday to resolve differences so that Prachanda government can begin work formally after taking oath of office and secrecy from President Dr Ram Baran Yadav.
Alliance members will also draft a common minimum programme and a code of conduct.
Vehemently anti-American Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda worked for an unspecified time from 1976 for US/AID Nepal, an official biography released by the party said.
Prachanda was also a teacher.
Prachanda, born in Kaski in December 1954, graduated in agriculture from Rampur, Chitwan and earlier studied at a campus in Lalitpur.
Dahal jointed the communist movement in 1971 joining the party led by Pushpa Lal Shrestha. and went underground in 1980; he was attached to CPN-Mashal and CPN (Unity Center) before becoming general secretary of CPN (Maoist) in 1995.
Prachanda launched the people’s war in February 1996.
Dahal was elected CPN (Maoist) chairman in 2000 and was appointed supreme commander of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) one year later.
Hours before his stunning election, Prachanda resigned as supreme commander of the PLA through a press statement adding colleagues with political responsibilities has also resigned.
Dahal was appointed PLA chief in 2058.
Prachanda also announced dissolution of parallel state structures.
The Maoist chief expressed only commitment to return of seized assets—a commitment which has never been sincerely implemented amid opposition at the local level; a commitment was also made to end the paramilitary activities of the controversial YCL penetrated mostly by former combatants.
Prachanda, married to Sita Paudel, has a son and three daughters.
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Power-hungry Koirala vacates Baluwatar

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 16 Aug: Power-hungry Girija Prasad Koirala Friday night vacated the official residence of the prime minister at Baluwatar unnoticed and settled down in Maharajgunj house of his nephew Dr Shashanka Koirala.
Koirala Friday voted for defeated Nepali Congress candidate Sher Bahadur Deuba , congratulated Prachanda on his election as prime minister and drove back to Baluwatar where he rested only for several minutes and left Baluwatar for the last time.
Outside office, five-time Koirala always conspired to return Baluwatar even splitting the Nepali Congress.
Koirala built up an alliance of eight political parties mainly with Indian help and brought down a 238-year Shah dynasty; foreign interference in Nepal reached its zenith during his last term in Singha Durbar.
Maoists trounced Congress in the 10 April CA election in which close family members, including daughter Sujata, were defeated.
Despite public commitment to quit after the vote, ailing octogenarian Koirala sought the presidency amid opposition from other parties; Dr Ram Baran Yadav was elected instead..
He then tried to lead an anti-Maoist front of what was called ‘democratic’ parties to stop former guerrillas from capturing Singha Durbar; the move failed miserably with the election of Prachanda by more than a two-third majority in the CA.
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No US congratulation for Prachanda

By Bhola B Rana

Kathmandu, 16 Aug: The USA didn’t congratulate Prachanda on his election by the first all-powerful prime minister of the federal republic of Nepal.
Maoists are still on the US terrorist list as Washington only established direct contact with the CPN (Maoist) after emerging as Nepal’s largest political party after the CA vote.
The USA instead congratulated the people of Nepal and the CA for the election ending a four-month political stalemate after the 10 April assembly election.
The American restraint shows the US distrust of Maoists and the difficulties the former guerrillas, who emerged from the jungle in April 2006, will have in its dealings with the world’s only super power.
The US embassy said the ‘necessary task’ of drafting Nepal’s constitution will be ‘difficult but necessary’ adding Washington will continue strong support for peace, democracy, human rights and development.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh , immediately after election, said :I look forward to working with you to further develop the bonds of good neighbourliness that unite peoples and nations, and to deepen the friendly relations that so happily exist between our two countries.”
Singh hoped to welcome Prachanda in New Delhi at an unspecified date.
Maoist-friendly heads of EU missions in Kathmandu said: We look forward to the new government delivering to the people to met their expectations for a prosperous future and taking forward the peace process, including through creating the environment for the drafting of a constitution that secures peace, stability and democracy.”
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ADB Ltd earns

Kathmandu, 16 Aug: Agriculture Development Bank (ADB) Ltd earned a net Rs 1618 million in the fiscal year 2007/08 ending mid-July 2008.
The Bank recorded a Rs 1058 million net profit the previous year.
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WFP to expand Nepal operations

Kathmandu, 16 Aug: Un World Food Programme (WFP) will expand Nepal operations to feed 1.3 more hungry people in 31 districts now also burdened with higher food prices.
The UN agency was previously supporting 1.2 million people struggling to recover from the Maoist people’s war and hit by natural disasters.
A recent contribution from Saudi Arabia helped scale up operations but more was needed, a statement said.
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Two suspected abductors of DrUpendra Debkota’s daughter arrested

Kathmandu, 16 Aug: Two suspected abductors of Megha, daughter of neurosurgeon Dr Upendra Debkota , were arrested by police in Hetauda Friday.
Krishna Rai was arrested along with Ganesh Lama.
Dr Debkota paid a Rs 13 million for the safe freedom of his daughter.
One person was nabbed earlier in the capital.
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