Many Hands Of Comrade Prachanda: Though they didn’t speak in the press conference, three deputy commanders of the Maoist People Liberation Army (PLA) were the attraction. Clockwise from left: Baldev (Chandra Khanal), Passang (Nanda Kishor Pun) and Prabhakar (Janardhan Sharma). Pic by Shailendra Kharel
Prachanda will explain his party’s policy and programs on Friday when he will appear publicly for the first time in the past 25 years.
By Dinesh Wagle
Wagle Street Journal
One of my friends in the Maoists circle called this afternoon to let me know that the rebels were going to announce something very important in a press conference in Rastriya Sabha Griha, Kathmandu. He asked me if I wanted to be there at 2 PM, on the second floor of the building. Why not? It’s going to be a big day, I guessed, and I must experience all these events personally. I was planning to meet a female model and singer in connection with my reporting for Kala ra Shailee. “Models later,” I told myself. “Comrades are in priority for the time being. Let me give the bhau to these comrades now.” When I told about my afternoon plan to one my colleague in the office, this is the response I got: “Yes, go, go. There will be no opportunity in future to give them bhau as their arms will be locked up in cantonments with UN lock in the near future and people will start beating Maoists if [rebels] continue bullying at them. 
” I agreed with him. The “Peoples’ War’ was definitely difficult for the rebels but the days of peace will not be easy ride. Answer as plain and straight as “Keep Quiet, we are fighting for the oppressed ones” will not make people quite against their highhandedness. This time, instead of arrogant comrades, ‘poor’ people will be armed and powerful. They will be armed with a weapon called VOTE. The Maoist comrades will be in desperate need of that vote to strengthen their position in the Constituent Assembly, the new battleground of the competitive politics. Continue reading
