PM tells top officials to beef up security

Kathmandu, April 9:

On the eve of the constituent assembly election, Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala today consulted heads of the Nepal Army, Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and the National Investigation Department on the latest security situation in the country.

During the joint meeting with the top security officials at his residence in Baluwatar, the Prime Minister asked Chief of Army Staff Rookmangud Katawal, Inspector General of Police Om Bikram Rana, IG of the Armed Police Force Basudev Oli and chief of the National Investigation Department Dhan Singh Karki to share intelligence and ensure coordination to maintain security for the election.

The Prime Minister also directed the police and the investigation officers to leave no stone unturned to avert any untoward incident in the run-up to the crucial vote, according to Baluwatar sources.

The security officials, however, opted not to comment on the meeting. The meeting came shortly after Maoist Chairman Prachanda met the Prime Minister regarding death of seven Maoist cadres in police firing following clashes between the Nepali Congress activists and Maoist cadres in Lamahi bazaar of Dang district yesterday.

“The Prime Minister also asked Nepal Police chief to immediately begin an investigation into Lamahi incident, as well as into the murder of CPN-UML candidate in Surkhet, and to punish the culprits,” a source told this daily.

UML General Secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal also met Koirala to discuss the Surkhet incident before the Prime Minister left for Biratnagar to take part in the polls.