Chapter 25

Summary

The inequality between the players created problems for the managers of the Constituent Assembly election. The Commission was ridiculed by the media and the civil society for failing to take effective action against the violations. The news reports carried disapproving headlines, like Toothless Election Commission, Impotent EC and Feeble Commission. The Commission began to lose what it valued most—its integrity.

Then, a complaint was filed by Dev Shankar Poudel, the UML candidate from the Rammechap-1 constituency, who stated that the Maoists had attacked his group while they were out campaigning. Poudyal said the Maoists had encircled them, and attacked him and his supporters with iron rods, heavy wooden sticks, large rough stones and Khukuris (Nepalese knifes), and stolen Nepalese Rupees 335,800 in cash.

That night, all the news channels showed Poudel lying in a hospital bed with injuries all over his body and a smashed and bloody head. When the Chief saw the images he was white with rage. He felt he had to take action, at any cost, to prevent a repetition of such an assault.

First, he planned to cancel the nomination of the Maoist candidate who was accused of being responsible for the attack on Poudel. The Chief was determined to use his executive prerogative to shorten the normally lengthy process of cancelling a nomination—in order to send a clear message to the perpetrators of violence.