KATHMANDU, Sept 16: The government has decided to withdraw the cases filed against the accused of the Tikapur massacre that took place some eight years ago. A Cabinet meeting held on September 12 decided to amend the law and withdraw the cases against the accused of the massacre.
According to a source, there was extensive discussion on the Tikapur incident in the Cabinet meeting. The Cabinet has decided to withdraw the cases after amending the law," said a minister.
According to sources, the government has also instructed the Ministry of Home Affairs to proceed with the dismissal of the case related to the Tikapur incident. In addition to this, the Netra Bikram Chand-led CPN and other independent groups have also decided to proceed with the case cancellation process.
Govt to drop charges in Kailali lynchings, other cases
“There is no mention of the Tikapur incident, the process of withdrawing the case is going to be carried out by covering all issues including the Tharuhat movement,'' said Fanindramani Pokharel, spokesperson for the Ministry of Home Affairs. He said that the current decision is a continuation of the previous government's decision.
"There is no new decision on this, the decision to amend the law and withdraw the case was made by the previous government. So, now the process is about to move forward," Pokharel said.
In the agreement, it was mentioned that all cases against Tharu Kalyankarini Sabha Chairman Dhaniram Chaudhary, Resham Lal Chaudhary, Laxman Chaudhary and others accused in the massacre during the Tharuhat-Tharuwan movement will be withdrawn and the accused will be released. "The current government has decided to implement the agreement reached with them by the previous government," Spokesperson Pokharel said.
On August 23, 2014, when there was a clash between protesters and the police in Tikapur of Kailali, eight people including SSP Lakshman Neupane, who was the head of Seti zone at the time, five members of the Nepal Police, two members of the armed police and one infant were killed.
CPN Spokesperson Khadga Bahadur Bishwakarma expressed the party's opinion on the matter and thanked the government for the Cabinet meeting's decision to dismiss the case.
