The shooting of Faizan Ahmad, the General Secretary of the Islamic Association of Nepal, on Monday after a string of at least five other high-profile murders and attempted murders in the country in the last two years is indicative of the deteriorating capacity of the security organs and an atmosphere of clandestine attacks. Last year, media entrepreneurs Jamim Shah was murdered in Kathmandu and Arun Singhania in Janakpur. Similarly, another media entrepreneur, Yunus Ansari was shot in the central jail in Kathmandu. Then there was the Indian Managing Director of the College of Medical Sciences, Nagender K Pampaty, also shot in one of the posh areas of the capital, Lazimpat. This year alone, there was life attempt on the assistant counsellor at the Pakistani Embassy, Mehboob Asif. All of these attacks remain unsolved and while authorities claim to open investigations to get down to the root of the cases, none have yielded significant results. The Faizan Ahmad case could meet similar fate.
When things remain unresolved, it’s natural for conspiracy theories to fly around. Who is behind these incidents? Is the increasing frequency of assassinations connected to larger international gang wars? Or are there other stories too? While some of those who have been caught in the cycle of violence could have had dubious backgrounds themselves, how do you justify the killings? Violence begets more violence. This clearly is not the kind of atmosphere we need in our society. It leads the society on a path of suspense, mistrust and mystery.
It’s a given that Home Minister Bijaya Kumar Gachhedar doesn’t have a roaring public image. Conducting a proper investigation, and punishing the guilty is his duty. His response so far has been confined to the transfer of the unfortunate chief of Kathmandu metropolis. But even in the midst of constant transfers of police officials to and from Kathmandu, criminal activity has not subsided. With the case of Ahmad, hours after the shooting, SP Kedar Rijal was transferred and SP Rajendraman Shrestha has replaced him. While the move was ostensibly due to the former’s inability to prevent the latest assassination, considering the history of transfers and replacements, it is uncertain whether Shrestha will be more effective.
It’s noteworthy that the assassinations and attempted murders have been made usually on the lives of people from the Tarai or from the Muslim minority. At the moment, there are more questions than answers. Only the investigations by the police, perhaps requiring international cooperation, will give us credible answers. The Home Ministry should make concerted efforts, to find the culprits though we realize that the web of killings is very complex and a short-term solution is not possible. What is a stake is nothing short of a national pyche tortured by serial assassinations that remain unresolved.
