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| Tuesday,
June 12, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Brahmin treated like a king Kathmandu, June 11 The gifts comprised King Birendra’s riches besides a truckload of furniture, clothes, cooked and uncooked food and all items of daily need for the Brahmin’s family. The ceremony had a distinguished audience comprising Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, Deputy Prime Minister Ram Chandra Paudyal, Speaker Taranath Ranabhat, Chief Justice Keshab Prasad Upadhyay, Chairman of the Raj Parishad Keshar Jung Raye Majhi, Foreign Minister Chakra Prasad Bastola, former Prime Minister Lokendra Bahadur Chand, national and international media besides the Brahmin’s wife and son. Ordinary people were not allowed entry to the ghat and the ring of palace guards, army personnel and police let journalists in after a lot of fuss. It is believed that the Brahmin chosen for the ceremony has to pay a heavy price for the luxuries, honour, royal treatment and unprecedented attention. The ritual implies consuming “katto” (special meal prepared by the Brahmin himself). As katto is considered impure, the Brahmin’s entry is traditionally banned in the Kathmandu valley. But things have changed says the Chief District Officer Tulsi Bhattarai. “There are no restrictions now.” According to a belief people do not want to see the Brahmin’s face again as he prepares and consumes meat of “boka” (male goat). During the mourning period the consumption of garlic, onion, tomato, liquor and meat is forbidden. Durga Prasad Sapkota arrived at the ghat at 7 a m where he prepared his own food. The food comprised rice, dal, “boka” along with 85 different items. The food was arranged before the pictures of various gods and goddesses. After he finished eating the food, the palace staff, including class II officers helped him wear the King’s clothes and the gold jewellery with Rudraksh beads gifted by the Raj Durbar. He was then helped by the mahout to climb the back of a much decorated elephant, named Nirajan Prasad after Prince Nirajan. The elephant was brought specially from the Royal Chitwan National Park, about 135 km from Kathmandu. The elephant will also be given away to the Brahmin. As the elephant carrying Durga Prasad Sapkota and the mahout headed towards Bagmati river to cross over to Patan town at about 12.45 p m, it was greeted by a large crowd of locals who wanted to catch a glimpse of the ceremony. The Brahmin is required to spend 24 hours in a dharamshala at Patan (Jawla Khel). The Chief District Officer of Kathmandu said that Durga Prasad Sapkopta had also been given money to buy property and land for farming.
He said that any Brahmin can volunteer his services for the ceremony. The final choice is made by the palace and age and experience count in this selection. The Brahmin chosen for the ceremony, however, reserves the right to ask for anything and his demand has to be fulfilled. The Kato ceremony for King Dipendra, son of King Birendra will be held here on Wednesday. The palace staff which supervised arrangements for loading the presents on to a truck past 2 p m refused to assess the value of the presents. They also kept a watch on the valuable possessions of the late Queen Aishwarya Rajya Laxmi Devi Shah and her son Prince Nirajan. The possessions include almirah, beds, cushions, mattresses, sword, portraits of the Queen and the Prince and even his shaving kit. These along with purchased gifts will be given to the chief priest of the Raj Durbar and others who performed the last rites. The gifts will be given in “sayya daan” which means donating shayya or the bed. |
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More time to panel annoys people Kathmandu, June 11 While the Opposition parties, including the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist Leninist), the National Democratic Party and the Sadhbhavana Party have hailed King Gyanendra’s decision to give four more days to the commission, the general public which was eagerly awaiting the report is disappointed. The term was extended after the head of the commission and Chief Justice Keshav Prasad Upadhyay submitted that the commission needed more time to write the final report. In his submission, the Chief Justice said that the commission had almost finished with the inquiry but was waiting for forensic reports. The new deadline expires on Thursday. King Gyanendra granted the extension after the government recommended the aforesaid submission. People fear that they will never get to know the truth if the commission is granted extension another time. Some are also angry that the commission failed to keep its deadline. “When they were given three days to finish the probe, why did they not do so?, asked Govind Shreshtha, a salesman in a departmental store in Tripureshwar. Praveen Shrestha, a computer programmer in Jamal, Kantipath, expressed the apprehension that the truth will never come out. “No Nepali has faith in the commission. Since it is a royal family matter, they will try to push things under the carpet. I doubt if they will meet the Thursday deadline. They will keep stretching the time in the hope that the public forgets about the issue, he said. College students are equally angry at the pace at which the commission is working. “If they know that Dipendra killed King Birendra, Queen Aishwarya and other members of the royal family, then why are they taking so much time to prove that he is guilty. We think Dipendra is innocent. We suspect they might keep seeking more extensions, says Deepa Rai who studies in Universal Academy, a private college. Bhim Acharya, spokesperson for the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) does not think that extension of time is noteworthy. “In three days, it was not possible for them to complete a proper probe. So, they sought more time. That King Dipendra killed the King, the Queen and other members of the royal family is a foregone conclusion but people want to hear it from the mouth of the
commission. And, ultimately, this is what the commission might say. People may or may not believe the commission’s findings, he said. Bhojraj Ghimire of the National Democratic Party and former Home Minister in Tulsi Giri’s Cabinet is of the view that the decision is right. “It is difficult to do justice to such a grave matter in three days. I don’t think the decision to give four more days to the commission is a debatable issue.” Rajendra Mahoto, general secretary of the Sadhbhavana Party told TNS that it was good that time given to the commission had been extended. It is a serious job. We hope that the commission report will bring out the facts. |
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Eyewitness faces court martial Kathmandu, June 11 Capt Rajiv Shahi, son-in-law of slain King Birendra’s younger brother Dhirendra, was being arraigned in the court for his “unauthorised” press conference at which he gave a detailed account of the June 1 killings. Shahi is a doctor in the Royal Nepal Army with the rank of Captain and is said to have spoken to journalists without the permission of his officers. He said in his well-publicised account last week that Crown Prince Dipendra went around the Narayan Hity palace gunning down his family before shooting himself. The sources said he violated military discipline. “He not only breached army rules and regulations, but also stirred a controversy in the public about the event in which the royal family is involved,” a source said. In Nepal, the king is the supreme commander of the Royal Nepal Army. The Crown Prince is his deputy. “Being an army officer, Shahi was not supposed to comment on the behaviour of the then Crown Prince Dipendra, which is another mistake he committed,” the sources added. Shahi had said: “I jumped to help the King as he was shot in the neck. My first job was to stop the bleeding. The King told me he was also shot in the stomach. “Dipendra came in and out of the room three times and all this happened within two minutes.” Shahi spoke to the press a day before an investigation ordered by new King Gyanendra into the carnage was to begin its work.
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KATHMANDU DIARY Kathmandu, June 11 Led by Mathbar Singh Basnet, editor of Nepali weekly, Punarjagran, journalists submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Superintendent of Police. The starting point of the march is symbolic as Peepal Bot is the spot from where the pro-democracy
movement began. Condolence messages The overwhelming response of the public and foreigners to the palace bloodbath has prompted the palace to extend the time for signing the condolence books at the palace. A notice issued by the palace Press Secretariat has stated that the last day for signing the condolence books is June 15. According to a report in The Kathmandu Post, about 80,000 persons had signed the condolence books. Patience gives way to anger People in the Kathmandu valley are disappointed that the two-member commission appointed by King Gyanendra had failed to submit its report on time. The extension sought by the commission has had an adverse impact on its credibility. People are beginning to feel that the commission has started using delay tactics to bury facts and figures related to the Narayan Hity Palace bloodbath. Some of them are keeping their fingers crossed that the commission keeps its Thursday deadline. New agenda After holding day-long meetings to take stock of the current situation in the Kathmandu valley and Nepal, the main Opposition party, the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist Leninist) has decided to hold a meeting to name candidates for the Upper House (Rashtriya Sabha ) elections schedule on June 27. The names of the polling officers for election of 16 members of the Rashtriya Sabha and the schedule for the elections was announced by the Election Commission here yesterday. |
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Dipendra was married to
Devyani: report Washington, June 11 Newsweek, quoting “sources linked to the palace”, claimed Dipendra, whose marriage to Devyani was unacceptable to the late King and Queen, married his beloved in a “ceremony called tikka, which is not legally recognised in Nepal”.
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