Maoists shut down eight district in Karnali, Bheri

Kathmandu, 13 March: Maoists Saturday shut down eight districts in Karnali and Bheri anchals protesting the death of an activist Rishi Gautam in an accident Wednesday in Surkhet.
Maoists have closed down the districts for two consecutive days.
Maoists charge Gautam was killed in a murder plot.
He died in the capital while undergoing treatment.
He was hit by a vehicle.
Movement of vehicles have come to a halt, industries have been closed down forcibly and markets have closed.
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DPM Gacheduar returns Saturday mater political discussions in India

Kathmandu, 13 March: Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of MJFL Bijaya Kumar Gachedhar returns home Saturday after extensive political discussions in New Delhi with ruling party, main opposition party leaders and government officials.
Prolonged discussions were held since Monday.
Gachedhar held discussions with Foreign Minister SM Krishna, former BJP President Rajnath Singh and Nepal Democracy Solidarity Committee Chairman DP Tripathi Friday.
Discussions were held amid a looming political crisis.
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Parliamentary committee off to Sudan

Kaathmandu, 13 March: A five-member team of parliament’s state affairs committee left for Dafur, Sudan, Saturday in investigate irregularities in a multi-million rupee logistics purchase scam for Nepal Police peacekeepers.
An estimated Rs 500 million were embezzled a sub-committee of the committee estimates.
The team is headed by Pardip Geywali of UML.
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CA Chairman Nemwang to hold discussions

Kathmandu, 13 March: Constituent assembly (CA) Chairman Subash Nemwang has convened a meeting Saturday with top political party leaders to discuss delays promulgating a constitution by the 28 May deadline.
He will also discuss deep differences between political parties on issues to be incorporated in the basic law to institutionalize a republic announced by an unelected and self-appointed parliament after abolishing monarchy.
Differences persist between major parties on fundamental subjects leading to fears the constitution won’t be proclaimed within schedule prompting a political crisis.
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal discussed the pace process and the constitution drafting Friday with President Dr Ram BaranYadav who summoned the government chief.
Chairman of the main constitution drafting committee Nilambar Acharya has identified 16 topics on which there should be unanimity between parties to suggest a draft to the CA.
He asked whether parties accept the principle of constitutionalism
and multi-party system.
Maoists are pushing a hard-line communist state.
Each article of the proposed constitution has to be adopted by a the-third vote majority of the assembly where no party has a majority.
Will the head of state be ceremonial or powerful and will there be a prime minister and president at the same time, Acharya asked.
How many provinces will a federal structure have with their borders?
There’s no unanimity on issues raised by Acharya.
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No mass integration of Maoists in army: Army Chief Gurung

Kathmandu, 13 March: Army Chief Gen Chatraman Singh Gurung Friday told UN Under-secretary for Political Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe Maoist combatants can’t be integrated en masse in Nepal Army saying only qualified fighters could be integrated in the state army individually.
He even told the visiting official 19,000 plus combatants had been verified by UNMIN when Maoist Chairman Prachanda confirmed the Maoists had only six to seven thousand combatants.
“Maoist leader in the Shaktikhor video have revealed there are only six to seven thousand Maoist combatants. I want to remind the strength was increased to 19,602 during verification.”
Maoists bragged they had tricked UN into enhancing the rebel strength.
asked how many combatants will be integrated.
“It’s felt Maoist combatants are excessively politically inspired,”
Gurung told the official.
He said Nepal Army is “disciplined, professional and apolitical” and warned “politically inspired persons conducting political exercises” could ‘divide’ the army and ‘finally the nation’.
On integration, Gurung called for the creation of an environment to find out the desires of individual fighters without “ fear, threat and pressure”.
Gurung suggested PLA fighters could be employed as forest guards, border security guards or they could be recruited to protect industries.
They could also be recruited in Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and National Investigation Department.
The army chief said the integration and rehabilitation of Maoist fighters should have been completed in six months but three years had elapsed and the army was confined to the barracks.
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MJF also deploys paramilitary wing

Kathmandu, 13 March: MJF has deployed a paramilitary youth force in 22 terai districts, Annapurna Post reports.
The party said a 31-member youth team under coordinated by Madesh Youth Forum central Chairman Yogendra Raya Yadav has been formed to counter suppression in the terai, Madesh under cover of a special security programme.
MJF Chairman Upendra Yadav is the force’s chairman.
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Maoist lawmakers told not to leave Valley

Kathmandu, 13 March: UCPN (Maoist) has directed its lawmakers not to leave the Valley saying even a no-confidence motion could be registered against the government, Nagarik reports.
A meeting at the at the office of the party’s parliamentary party asked legislators not to leave the capital for districts.
“A special meeting of parliament could be convened,” Santosh Buda Magar told Nagarik quoting parliamentary party deputy leader Narayan Kazi Shrestha and chief whip Post Bahadur Bogati.
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SPORTS

Nepal plays Malaysia

Kathmandu, 13 March: Nepal meets Malaysia Sunday in the semi-finals of the ACC U-16 Elite Cup.
Malaysia Friday beat Thailand by 175 runs in Group A to move to the semi-final.
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MEDIA GOOGLE

“It most of our regional and local-level consultations, we have found members of all the religious groups fear that the path of federalism could invite conflict.”

(IRCN [a council of major religions] Chairman Damodar Gautam after presenting a memorandum to the president on a federal structure, The Kathmandu Post, 13 March)

“UNMIN isn’t necessary only to overlook weapons in cantonments.”

(Congress leader Dr Ran Sharan Mahat, Annapurna Post, 13 March)
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