Kathmandu, May 7 - The controversial videotape in which UCPN-Maoist chairman and incumbent Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ talks to the commanders of the People’s Liberation Army sis now learnt to have been distributed by Nepal Army headquarters.
Following government’s decision to ask for clarifications from army chief Rookmangud Katawal, the military headquarters distributed the videotape to president Dr. Ram Baran Yadav, CPN-UML senior leaders Madhav Kumar Nepal and KP Sharma Oli, Nepali Congress president Girija Prasad Koirala and leaders of other parties represented in the Constituent Assembly, a source claimed.
The Headquarters translated the videotape and distributed to the diplomatic missions including the Indian and the American embassies in Kathmandu.
The videotape was bought from the PLA cantonment’s one and a half years ago in a special initiative of the government sacked army chief Katawal himself.
Major Dik Bahdur Thapa who had links with a deputy-commander of the PLA was entrusted with the responsibility to prepare a record of Prachanda’s training and bring out the video tape. And later on, Katawal awarded major Thapa and sent him to UN Mission in Kongo. On the other hand, the deputy commander received money in three installments for the job of recording and sending out.
According to the source, there was a meeting of the Principal Staff Officers (PSO) to discuss the matter of the tape before it was distributed to the president, political leaders and diplomatic missions. However, the then second in command of the army and the government named acting army chief Kul Bahadur Khadka was not invited to the meeting. The president was not informed about the army’s plan to broadcast the videotape through different private TV channels.
Editing and distribution of the tape was performed by the Directorate of Psychological Operation of the army. Army spokesperson Ramindra Chhetri has been chief of the unit ever since its establishment. The unit was set up during war period to fight psychologically against the Maoists.
The Directorate had earlier made videotape about the murder of journalist Dekendra Thapa whom the Maoists killed and about Kajol Khatun who lost her life on a bus the Maoists set fire to 8 years ago.
The video was distributed after the government asked for clarifications from Katawal. A weekly newspaper had first written a news story on the basis of the tape. The private TV channels broadcast it for three consecutive days and newspapers made news on it after Prachanda resigned Monday from premiership to protest president’s move to reinstate Katawal.
