Kavre, April 23

Twenty-six-year-old Mukesh Kayastha cannot walk or talk, and has been confined to his home in Banepa, Kavre for the last 11 years. His family is worried about what will become of him after his parents.

Mukesh was injured by a gunshot during the second People’s Movement at Teendobato, Kavre. The bullet hit his left temple and destroyed one-third of brain mass in the left hemisphere. The remaining brain mass has been hit by a condition called hydrocephalus, causing impairment of neurological functions.

The Kayasthas’ only son Mukesh was a 15-year-old eighth grader at Bidhya Sagar School in Banepa at that time.

Doctors here and abroad had said that Mukesh could not be cured, and asked his family to continue giving him optimal care. Mukesh’s family has been demanding that the government declare him a living martyr.

The government has waived Rs 7 lakh taken as loan by the family, and also provided 1.6 million rupees for his treatment so far. It has also been providing Rs 15,000 per month to the family for medication, and arranged for a health worker to care for him for the past five years.