‘Truce was declared at New Delhi’s behest’

As welcome statements continue to pour in from different quarters over the three-month unilateral ceasefire declared by Maoist supremo Prachanda on Saturday, an Indian daily newspaper has reported that the truce was called “at the behest of New Delhi” to put international pressure on King Gyanendra for a dialogue.

The Pioneer daily, in its September 4 online edition said quoting sources, “The so-called truce has been announced at New Delhi's behest to create international pressure on King Gyanendra who has launched a massive offensive against the Maoists ever since the royal coup of February 1.”

“It is believed that the supreme leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), Pushpa Kamal Dahal, better known as Comrade Prachanda, was in India recently for talks with officials of the Ministry of External Affairs and the Cabinet Secretariat.”

According to the news report, which was widely cited by Nepali dailies – government’s mouthpieces Gorkhapatra and The Rising Nepal dailies ran elaborate reports on Tuesday based on The Pioneer story -, the Prime Minister’s Office [India] and the Ministry of External Affairs have clearly ignored, in pursuing a deal with the rebel leader, the stand of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs that maintains a tough stand against the Nepali rebel outfit.

The CPI (Marxist) took initiatives in these dealings, The Pioneer claimed.

“Officials in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, who have been closely tracking Prachanda and his ‘People's Liberation Army’, have reacted with caution to the truce offer,“ the report said. “This is clearly aimed at achieving two goals -instigating external pressure on King Gyanendra to start a dialogue with the Maoists and recovering from the massive counter-assault on Maoists mounted by the Royal Nepalese Army," The Pioneer quoted a senior official said as commenting.

There is a clear rift between the home and external affairs ministries regarding the deal with Nepali Maoists and that Indian intelligence officials were not quite positive over the latest development, according to the report.

"Those who believe the Maoists in Nepal can be drawn into legitimate politics through a deal-induced truce are grossly mistaken. They should remember how Prachanda violated the truce of 2003. They should also learn from our own domestic experience," The Pioneer quoted an official involved with counter-intelligence operations.

The Indian officialdom is yet to react to these media reports.

Amid contrasting interpretations, India on Monday said the truce declared by the Maoists would be helpful in establishing peace in Nepal. “We hope that the ceasefire announced by the Maoists will contribute towards creating an environment in which a peace process can begin,” a statement of the Indian External Affairs Ministry said. It added, “We believe the problems of Nepal can only be addressed on a durable basis through a process of dialogue and reconciliation in an atmosphere free from violence and terror.” nepalnews.com mk Sept 06 05

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