CHITWAN: The CPN-Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Saturday said Bandarmude incident was a grave mistake. He also said that he then had directed action against the guilty in the incident, and the culpable have already been punished.

Inaugurating the Diwakar-Tirtha Kumar Bhusal Memorial Free Volleyball Competition in Chitwan today, Dahal said that the next government would address the demands of the Bandarmude victims.

Earlier, Dahal registered his nomination for the House of Representatives elections from Chitwan constituency-3 which includes Madi where the incident occurred.

At least 38 people were killed and 75 others injured when the then Maoist rebels ambushed an overcrowded bus in Bandarmude in Madi, Chitwan, on June 6, 2005.

Dahal had started his political career from Madi.

This is the second time that Dahal visited Madi in particular ahead of the polls after February 28, 2013 to inaugurate the Madi festival and had announced to provide a lump sum of Rs 6 million to each victim's family.

Anyone found guilty of the incident by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons would face action, he said, while admitting that some of the victims are yet to get justice due to the issue of an amendment to the commissions' acts.

In a different note, he said that the next government would build overhead bridge or a tunnel way for the locals to travel through the Chitwan National Park, saying the locals are facing problems due to the park.

Likewise, on the occasion, CPN-UML standing committee member Surendra Prasad Pandey expressed hope that the next government would become stable, and bring prosperity to the country. Other speakers like the Maoist Centre leader Amik Sherchan also spoke at the event.