Government bans Chand-led CPN

Just days after a second blast in the Valley, the government today banned the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) led by Netra Bikram Chand 'Biplov'. The party was involved in a series of explosions including at Ncell towers and other public places across the country.
Hoping that the government move will pressurise the Chand-led CPN to surrender, the cabinet meeting held in Baluwatar late today evening decided to ban the Chand-led CPN party and its ‘criminal’ activities, a cabinet minister said, adding that the government has concluded that the group has been engaging in criminal activities by detonating bombs at infrastructure projects and disturbing peace and security. "As the Chand-led party has been indulging in terrorist activities, there is no way to deal with it politically."
However, home minister Ram Bahadur Thapa – during the meeting briefed the cabinet – branding the Chand-led Communist Party of Nepal a criminal group – and also informed that the Som Prasad Pandey-led talks team failed to hold dialogue with the party. "The party did not respond to the government talks team even after release of its leaders, including spokesperson Khadga Bahadur Bishwokarma 'Prakanda'," Thapa added. "The party used the government talks team to release its leaders."
The government had signed a peace accord with secessionist CK Raut a day before banning the Chand-led NCP, and banned the other as it has information that Chand is planning some 'serious attacks' on 'key leaders.' Senior leaders of the CPN have reportedly gone underground while its cadres have been engaged in violent activities.
"After being briefed by the four security agencies, the government has concluded that the Chand-led CPN's activities were more criminal than political, it needs to be dealt with accordingly,” another cabinet minister added.
The government is also under pressure as it is planning to hold second investment summit, scheduled on March 29-30. The splinter of the former Maoist has been indulged in extortion and force 'donation drive' apart from detonating explosives threatening the private sector. Apart from Ncell bombing, the outfit had earlier attacked the project site of Arun III hydroelectricity project and also warned that it will not allow the Upper Karnali hydroelectricity project to move forward. The Maoist splinter on March 8 has also detonated a bomb at the residence of a foreign employment association president Rohan Gurung.
The then government in 2002 had also banned the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' through an ordinance during the armed conflict. Incumbent home minister Thapa and the banned Chand were CPN-M leaders then. Chand later joined Mohan Baidhya-led Nepal Communist Party-Maoist (Revolutionary) but he led CPN with a splinter parting ways with Baidhya.

Government move to amend IBN Act draws flak

The lawmakers have taken exceptions on government move to empower the Investment Board through amendment of the Investment Board of Nepal (IBN) Act.
Speaking at the Finance Committee under Parliament today, the lawmakers – including the ones from the ruling party CPN (CPN) – said that the amendment will increase already tense relations among the ministries and the board. "The bill seems to be taking away power from development-related ministries and giving it to the board,” a NCP lawmaker and former energy minister Janardan Sharma said, adding that giving excessive power to the board will paralyse other state mechanisms.
The government is amending the IBN Act also to lure the foreign investors before the investment summit scheduled for March 29-30.
The proposed amendment has also delegated the authority to issue generation licence for hydel projects with capacity of above 200 megawatts to the board but according to the existing Electricity Act, Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation has the right to issue such licence for all hydropower projects.
Likewise, the amendment bill has also given authority to approve FDI more than Rs 6 billion to the board from current authority to approve the FDI worth more than Rs 10 billion claiming that the new legal provisions will help attract more foreign direct investment.
However, the opposition Nepali Congress (NC) lawmaker Gagan Thapa said that the government had prepared the draft of the Investment Bill and Public Private Partnership (PPP) without enough consultation with the respective secretaries and ministries. He also said that the government secretaries are against the provision of centralising power with the board. "The government seems to be feeling that development of projects will be smoother if they are under the jurisdiction of the board rather than other government agencies, including ministries," he said, adding that the board has not a single success story of the board. "The opposition party leader should also be represented at the board."
Rejecting the representation of the opposition in the board, finance minister Dr Yub Raj Khatiwada defended that the government is not trying to centralise power. "Mega projects have to be dealt with by the centre," he said, adding that empowering the board is important, apart from expanding its jurisdiction to facilitate the development of projects, as the country targets speedy development and economic growth.
He also said that the PPP and Investment Bill – that that proposes giving additional teeth to the prime minister-chaired board – will smoothen the mega projects.
After discussion, the Finance Committee today passed the bill and is likely to be tabled in the Parliament tomorrow.

Biplov owns up to Ncell blast

Two days after a deadly blast – in front of the Ncell gate in Nakkhu – that took one person’s life and wounded two others, the Netra Bikram Chand 'Biplov'-led Communist Party of Nepal claimed responsibility for the explosion and also attacks on various Ncell towers in different parts of the country.
"We didn’t carry out the explosion targeting pedestrians," one of the Biplov-led party leaders claimed, apologising for human casualty. "We exploded the bomb to warn the ongoing corruption by Ncell."
However, fighting alleged corruption with terror is not the right and legal way rather will distract foreign investment.
Three people were injured when an improvised device exploded in front of the gate of Ncell head office in Nakkhu at around 8pm on Friday. One of the injured, Singha Prasad Gurung (49) died at around 1am Saturday at Mediciti Hospital, while undergoing treatment.
Acknowledging that the explosion at Ncell office and arson attacks on the its towers were carried out by the semi-underground Communist Party of Nepal, it also claimed that the party had no intention to target any member of the public. "The entire party rank and file is sad over the loss of a human life."
At least a dozen telephone towers of the private telecom service provider were torched in different districts including Achham, Kanchanpur, Nawalparasi, Nuwakot, Gorkha, Kaski and Myagdi on Friday night. At least four towers were torched in Myagdi alone.
The splinter of the erstwhile CPN (current Maoist Centre) – that waged a decade-long insurgency – Biplov-led Communist Party has been accusing Ncell of failing to pay billions of rupees in capital gains tax, taking the money earned from Nepal to foreign country, defying court order and buying staffers of the state-owned Nepal Telecom to make its services inefficient. The party claimed that the explosion was a warning to Ncell activities.
However, the illegal way and creating terror among the foreign investors will hit the country as Nepal is preparing to organise Investment Summit next month to lure foreign investment. The incident has raised question on the government's ability and preparedness for foreign investment, though the government has been repeatedly claiming that it will provide security to the foreign and domestic investors.
Ncell – bought by a Malaysian mobile giant Axiata from Swedish TeliaSonera in April 2016 – has been in the news for wrong reasons due to government mishandling of the case.  The then government ministers and tax officials told Axiata that it need not pay capital gains tax. But the tax officials also allowed TeliaSonera go back home without paying capital gain tax – normally paid by the seller, who gains to pay the tax – and also released money from its bank account.
The government and tax officials can still write official letter to the Sweden government through the Foreign Ministry claiming to capital gain tax, but neither the government nor the protestors including Biplov-led communist party are taking the legal and official way to resolve the problem but resorting to the vandalising and extortion destroying the investment climate of the country.
Responding to a writ petition by a group of civil society members including Dwarika Nath Dhungel, the Supreme Court on February 6 ordered Ncell and its parent company Axiata to pay capital gains tax. Five days later, the tax authority said Ncell and Axiata’s capital gains tax liability stood at around Rs 75 billion. The apex court decision has also raised serious question on the government and the law as to how come a buyer pay capital gain tax – against the international law and practice – and the seller, who gained is left to return the country,
Biplov Communist Party has been regrouping and being involved in extortion and criminal activities. It had been attacking Ncell and asking for donations too.