Nepal Govt defies court order,Maoists assault Pashupatinath priests

Nepals Minister for Culture today said the Government will not obey the Supreme Court order staying the appointment of a priest ...

Nepals Minister for Culture today said the Government will not obey the Supreme Court order staying the appointment of a priest believed to have been handpicked by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda to head the Pashupatinath temple. The brazen defiance of the court egged Maoist cadres to go a step ahead and assault temple priests preparing to address a press conference to protest the Governments interference in Pashupatinath affairs.

We are not going to stay the decision that the government has already taken regarding appointment of the new priest of the temple,minister Gopal Kirati,also a Maoist central committee member,said.

The new head priest,appointed by the Government-nominated Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) is being protected by Young Communist League workers deployed inside the temple by the Maoist party. Today,the PADT unilaterally appointed two junior priests,ostensibly to help the head priest run the affairs of the temple.

In his first comments since the court order four days ago,Prime Minister Prachanda today said it was his duty to see that a new head priest was appointed at the earliest. It was just a coincidence that the new head priest happened to be from Nepal. He did not comment on the departure from the 275-year-old tradition of having the head priest from the south of the Vindhyas. Without taking any names,Prachanda said the issue was being politicised.

The defiance of the court and assault on priests has triggered concern in legal and political circles. This government wants to deprive citizens of their right to religion, political scientist Surendra K C said. Constitutional lawyer Kumar Regmi said,Todays incident shows there is total constitutional breakdown in the country. Constitution,constitutional order and constitutional norms seem to have no place in the Maoist regime.

P L Singh,former minister and mayor of Kathmandu urged all political parties to unite against the Maoists,and said the Prime Minister must be dismissed if he refuses to honour the Supreme Courts decision. Former King Gyanendra had appealed to the government yesterday not to introduce partisan politics into Pashupatinath.

First uploaded on: 05-01-2009 at 04:35 IST

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 vs Singham Again box office collection day 10

Entertainment48 min ago

The Diwali clash between Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 and Singham Again has resulted in a blockbuster for Hindi cinema, with both films making a cumulative total of Rs 400 crore in just 10 days. Despite being franchise films with a strong ensemble and mass appeal, both movies have been neck-and-neck in terms of box office collections.

View all shorts

Live Blog