Delhi sees campaign to impede ties with Nepal

By Atul Aneja

NEW DELHI, DEC. 29. India today described the violence in Nepal which has targeted Indians as a motivated campaign designed to impede special ties between New Delhi and Kathmandu.

``Events (in Nepal) were clearly orchestrated as they were built on an unsubstantiated rumor at a specific time'', a Foreign Office spokesman in response to question said. He added that the happenings in Kathmandu which were apparently triggered by the alleged remarks by actor, Hrithik Roshan, against Nepal were ``designed to whip up negative sentiments.''

Meanwhile, the Council of Ministers in Nepal, in a joint statement in Kathmandu, has described the acts of ``violence and vandalism''in Kathmandu as ``contemptible.'' The statement added that the spread of violence on the grounds of an individual's ``unsubstantiated and repeatedly refuted remarks'' did not befit national dignity. It urged the people of Nepal to guard against ``misleading propaganda and conspiracy to cause loss of life and fan communal hatred in the country.''

Analysts here are veering to the view that the violence in Kathmandu which has targeted Indians is an expression of retaliation by a section of the Mumbai underworld which has penetrated Nepal. It is meant to generate anti-India sentiments as well as pressure the Nepalese leadership, on account of its perceived pro-India disposition, they say.

Highly placed sources in the Government observed that the events in Nepal could be traced to the recent arrest of a Mumbai film producer, with alleged links with he Chotta Shakeel gang. They added that a combination of the Chotta Shakeel gang and the Dawood Ibrahim network together with the ISI has considerable clout in Nepal to generate street violence.

According to sources, the Dawood-Chotta Shakeel combine which allegedly master-minded the Mumbai blasts established a prominent presence in Karachi and Kathmandu soon after this event. In Nepal, the Mumbai underworld forged contacts with the local smugglers as well as Mirza Dilshad Beg, who allegedly was the ISI kingpin in Kathmandu. Mirza Dilshad Beg was subsequently assassinated reportedly by the Chotta Rajan gang which had fallen out with Dawood after the Mumbai blasts.

Chotta Shakeel's links with Nepal resurfaced during the investigation of the hijacking last year of the Indian Airlines plane which had taken off from Kathmandu, the sources said. Indian security agencies on December 22, 1999 intercepted calls on a mobile phone by an affiliate of the Chotta Shakeel gang. The Chotta Shakeel operative made these calls to destinations in Karachi, Jeddah and most prominently to Kathmandu. Interception of these calls which resulted in several arrests turned out be invaluable for piecing together the hijack conspiracy. The Chotta Shakeel gang's wide political networking also became visible when one of the calls was traced to a person in U.K who had close links with the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HUM), a Jehadi organisation based in Pakistan.

The FICCI entertainment committee which includes prominent film personalities including Mr. Yash Chopra, Mr. Subhash Ghai and Mr. Shah Rukh Khan has expressed concern at the events in Nepal. In a statement, the committee on behalf of the Indian film industry reiterated its commitment to nurture long- standing ties with Nepal.

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