Masuriya, November 22:

Shankar Kunwar of Bijgada, Bajhang, has reached Maoists’ Division Headquarters at Taalband in Kailali district to search for his son, who left home to join the Maoists recently. “My son Ramesh left home without informing anyone to join the Maoist militia four days ago. Now they won’t even let me meet him,” Kunwar told this daily today, adding, “I have come here to take my son back.”

Not only Kunwar, but a number of parents whose children were taken away by the Maoists for recruitment in their Peoples’ Liberation Army (PLA) have come to Masuriya to search for their children.

Forty-five-year-old Deusari Kunwar of Jugedabi is also in Masuriya for the past three days searching for her 15-year-old son, who was lured by the Maoists to join PLA. “Everyone in the family is worried after my son went missing,” she said.

Similarly, Laxmi Devi of Jugedabi is also staying in Masuriya for the past four days to search for her brother Tek Bahadur Bista.

“It has been four days since the Maoists took my brother with them but they would not let me meet my brother now,” she said. Parbati Khadka, mother of Khem Bahadur Khadka, whom the Maoists took with them four days ago, is also in Masuriya searching for her son.

The Maoists had taken over 30 students from grade 6 -10 of Saraswati school situated at Bijgada of Bajhang to recruit them in the PLA, the parents said.

Meanwhile, commander of the Maoists’ Seventh Division, Prajwal, said the students were not being recruited in the PLA. “Number of those wishing to join CPN-Maoist is on the rise nowadays. Although we are distributing party membership, the students are not recruited in the PLA,” Prajwal said.

Whereabouts of minors disclosed

Dhading: Maoists, who are being accused of recruiting minors in their Peoples’ Liberation Army of late, made public the whereabouts of 20 minors at a press meet at Amarawati in Dhading on Tuesday. Addressing the meeting, Maoist district in-charge Shibir claimed that the children had voluntarily joined the Maoists. The Maoists had been accused of abducting over 100 children from Dhading. — HNS