Chakkajam was a protest against growing lawlessness: Maoist leader

A day after the Maoists imposed two-hour long Chakkajam (traffic blockade) in Kathmandu Wednesday in the name of protesting 'police atrocities’, a Maoist leader has defended the move, saying that it was meant for the convenience of the general people as well as to protest the “growing lawlessness in the country”.

Talking to Nepalnews on Thursday, member of the Maoist ‘talks facilitation committee’, Ek Raj Bhandari claimed that they organised the Chakkajam to protest the growing lawlessness of the country and the government’s inability to check it.

He further said that though the Maoists were serious about the problems caused to general people due to the Chakkajam, they were compelled to do so to improve the security situation in the Kathmandu Valley.

The Maoists called a two-hour long Chakkajam following a minor scuffle with the police at Koteshwore on Tuesday, after the Maoists "arrested" an Armed Police Force (APF) official who, according to the Maoists, was involved in criminal activities.

The rebels had taken APF man Tek Bahadur Tamang under control from Jorpati area and took him with them to Jadibuti near Koteshwore.

Following the Maoist move, policemen and APF personnel went to Koteshwore and demanded that the Maoists release their colleague. When the Maoists refused to do so, the policemen forcefully took him away to Hanumandhoka police station.

“When we are working for a political outlet and have stopped our people’s court in urban area, the government failed to maintain peace and stability in the country. Cases of robbery have risen and the culprits started getting protection from the state. We staged a symbolic protest against this yesterday,” Bhandari clarified.

Asked why the Maoists did not opt for other forms of protest to create pressure on government, rather than creating difficulties to general people, Bhandari said, “People have to bear some difficulties in the transitional period as the country is moving towards a new political outlet because such protest programmes are meant for the welfare and protection of the people.”

The Maoist cadres vandalised some vehicles that plied on the streets without knowing about the protest called by the rebels. They also stopped ambulances plying during the Chakkajam.

The Maoists have been continuing their activities like taking people into control and collection of forceful donations in the capital even as they have repeatedly committed not to do so.

In recent months, the Maoists have been carrying out self-styled role of the police in the Kathmandu Valley in the name of maintaining security and curbing crime. nepalnews.com pb Oct 26 06