Maoist-Led Local Bodies Announce Insurgency Holiday

Several local bodies where candidates from the CPN (Maoist Center) emerged victorious in the recent local elections have declared Tuesday as a public holiday to commemorate the beginning of the Maoist insurgency. This decision comes despite a Supreme Court order instructing the government not to observe a holiday on “People’s War Day” on Falgun 1.

The Supreme Court, in a ruling on December 29, 2022, directed against implementing any decision to grant a holiday on “People’s War Day,” citing concerns that such observances without completing the peace process only exacerbate the suffering of victims.

While the federal government led by Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has refrained from declaring Tuesday as a public holiday, the Home Ministry, under the leadership of Senior Vice-chairman Narayan Kaji Shrestha, issued a statement clarifying the absence of any such holiday announcement.

Nevertheless, more than a dozen local bodies, where Maoist candidates secured victories in the previous local elections, have independently declared a public holiday for Tuesday. Notably, Maoist candidates clinched victories in 121 local bodies during the last local elections.