Govt. offices reopen after a long break in Nepal

KATHMANDU, JUNE 12. Business establishments and Government offices opened today after a long break to mourn the deaths of King Birendra, Queen Aishwarya and seven others of the royal family.

The king, queen and others were gunned down on June 1 at the palace and a witness and relatives of survivors said Prince Dipendra was responsible for the killings. The prince then fatally shot himself, according to those accounts.

Many Nepalese disapprove of the new monarch, King Gyanendra, Birendra's younger brother, as he lacks the charisma of the slain king. Some even suspect King Gyanendra's hands in the massacre. In 1990, Birendra won acclaim for ceding power and overseeing the introduction of a constitutional democracy.

``As long as I can remember, the pictures of King Birendra and Queen Aishwarya have remained not just on the walls of our offices, but also in our hearts,'' said a Government employee.

``I don't think we will ever be able to remove that,'' he added.

Most Nepalese have the picture of the late king, who some revere as the reincarnation of Lord Vishnu, in their homes and at offices.

Government offices will eventually replace pictures of Birendra with those of King Gyanendra.

'' said Ms. Mina Chetri, a vendor.

Meanwhile, the Kantipur, Nepal's biggest newspaper, today said the military has completed an inquiry against an Army doctor who was the first witness to go public with his account and called Dipendra a ``murderer''.

Maoists' appeal

The leader of Nepal's underground Maoists has urged all Left-wing parties to join forces to form an interim Government following the massacre, local reports said today. ``To find a way out of the grave situation, I appeal to all the nationalist, Left forces and Republicans to unite and form a joint interim Government in Nepal independently,'' its leader, Mr. Prachanda, was quoted as saying by a Nepali language daily Janadesh.

Mr. Prachanda claimed the massacre was a conspiracy against Nepal by national and international forces, who also want to suppress the Maoist movement, English daily Space Time Today said.

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Editor remanded

KATHMANDU, JUNE 12. A three-member special court today reprimanded Nepal police for its failure to produce enough documentary evidence to support sedition charge against Mr. Yubraj Ghimire, Editor of Kantipur, and its two other functionaries, and allowed only three days remand as against 25 days prayed by police.

Amidst protests by journalists, the bench reprimanded the police for not bringing sufficient documents to prove their charges and justify their plea against the accused.

Mr. Ghimire and the two directors were arrested on Wednesday last following publication of an article written by underground Maoist leader, Mr. Baburam Bhattarai, in the daily alleging a conspiracy by the RAW and the CIA behind the massacre.

- PTI

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