Kathmandu, October 8, 2007

The five-day 16th central committee meeting of the CPN-UML concluded today, stressing that the first meeting of constituent assembly was the best option to overthrow monarchy, as it was the national commitment expressed through the interim constitution.

The meeting concluded that another date of the constituent assembly polls must be announced immediately to end uncertainty over the election. “The monarchy can be eliminated by force, by a two-thirds majority of the interim parliament or by a referendum. But those options need further understanding and a national consensus among all the political parties. So, the practical approach to decide on the future of monarchy is the first meeting of the constituent assembly,” UML’s central leader Krishna Gopal Shrestha said at the end of the meeting. He, however, suggested that the party had “kept open” all options to discuss the issue of a referendum, floated by Maoist chairman Prachanda on Sunday, and the meeting authorised the party’s standing committee to take appropriate decision on those options.

He said the party was not averse to the idea of a referendum if all the parties, including the Nepali Congress and the Maoists, agreed on it.

The meeting did not officially demanded Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala’s resignation for his inability to hold the constituent assembly polls in order to “maintain the seven parties’ unity” and to “block any possible alliance of the rightist forces”.

Abducted child’s body found

Lalitpur, October 8, 2007

The police last night found the body of eight-year-old Dhiraj Adhikari who was abducted on Thursday under Balkumari bridge here.

The body was found wrapped in a sack, the police said. The police have arrested kidnapping mastermind Nabin Shrestha and his accomplices — his elder brother Raju Kumar Shrestha, Tikaram Shrestha and taxi driver Bhoj Kumar Lama on charge of kidnapping and murdering the child. Raj Kumar Magar, who was also involved in the kidnapping has been absconding, the police said. SP Madhar Prasad Nepal at the Metropolitan Police Range, Lalitpur, said Nabin confessed to the crime when the police took him into custody for interrogation last night.

Shrestha is the neighbour of Adhikari in Sainbu and a land dispute with Dhiraj’s father, retired armyman Arjun Adhikari, was the main cause of abduction. “Shrestha said he had kidnapped the child to teach Adhikari a lesson for building a house next to his,” the police said.

The police said Nabin lured the child with juice when he was returning home from Nakkhu Shahid Dharmalal School and took him to the office of Balkumari Dojo. Nabin is a martial arts expert and holds the post of secretary of the Balkumari Dojo. Dhiraj was with his classmate, Siling, when he was abducted.