KATHMANDU: A strong sense of dj vu prevailed over Indian foreign secretary Nirupama Rao's meeting with Maoist chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda Wednesday, with the former revolutionary predictably backtracking on his anti-India rhetoric.
When Rao expressed India's concern at the growing attack on India by the Maoists in their public meetings, wall writings and party organs, the spectre of a people's revolt raised by Prachanda and his growing exhortations to party men to brace for a combat with India, the former revolutionary predictably backpedalled, saying his party was not against India. However, the denial rang hollow with Prachanda's confidants like former information and communications minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara and lawmaker Barsha Man Pun Ananta blaming India for the withdrawal of the UN from Nepal's floundering peace negotiations last week.
Also predictably, Prachanda raised the issue of abrogating all past unequal treaties with India, demands with which the Maoists went to war in 1996. However, Indian diplomatic sources say it has been mostly rabble-rousing rhetoric with no clear vision or intention about what they really want in place of the old agreements. Even after the Maoists led the government in 2008-9 and Prachanda visited New Delhi officially as prime minister, no efforts were made by the former guerrillas to get the proposal rolling. Though India was ready to discuss the treaties, the issue was quickly swept under the carpet by the Maoists.
The anti-Indian rhetoric is not going to go away after Rao's visit. If anything, it is likely to grow even more strident. The leadership challenge between Prachanda and his deputy, Dr Baburam Bhattarai, has never been as open as it is currently. It caused the Maoists to shelve a training programme for their cadre and call an emergency meeting of the central committee Thursday after the politburo failed or feared to tackle the smouldering dispute. The Prachanda faction considers Bhattarai as having th! e ear of the Indian dispensation and if it suffers any losses, New Delhi would be automatically blamed.
More fireworks are in the offing when the caretaker government seeks to decide what to do with the nearly 20,000 Maoist soldiers still cooling their heels in cantonments, five years after the peace agreement was signed. Though after protracted stalling the Maoists agreed to free their People's Liberation Army from their control and put it from Saturday under the prime minister-led special committee formed to supervise, integrate and rehabilitate the fighters, the work is not likely to be smooth. The Maoists have already laid down new conditions that the committee be also asked to monitor the entire national army and in the days to come, the question of whether the PLA should be disbanded and how many of them should be recruited in the army are going to be hotly debated issues.
When Rao expressed India's concern at the growing attack on India by the Maoists in their public meetings, wall writings and party organs, the spectre of a people's revolt raised by Prachanda and his growing exhortations to party men to brace for a combat with India, the former revolutionary predictably backpedalled, saying his party was not against India. However, the denial rang hollow with Prachanda's confidants like former information and communications minister Krishna Bahadur Mahara and lawmaker Barsha Man Pun Ananta blaming India for the withdrawal of the UN from Nepal's floundering peace negotiations last week.
Also predictably, Prachanda raised the issue of abrogating all past unequal treaties with India, demands with which the Maoists went to war in 1996. However, Indian diplomatic sources say it has been mostly rabble-rousing rhetoric with no clear vision or intention about what they really want in place of the old agreements. Even after the Maoists led the government in 2008-9 and Prachanda visited New Delhi officially as prime minister, no efforts were made by the former guerrillas to get the proposal rolling. Though India was ready to discuss the treaties, the issue was quickly swept under the carpet by the Maoists.
The anti-Indian rhetoric is not going to go away after Rao's visit. If anything, it is likely to grow even more strident. The leadership challenge between Prachanda and his deputy, Dr Baburam Bhattarai, has never been as open as it is currently. It caused the Maoists to shelve a training programme for their cadre and call an emergency meeting of the central committee Thursday after the politburo failed or feared to tackle the smouldering dispute. The Prachanda faction considers Bhattarai as having th! e ear of the Indian dispensation and if it suffers any losses, New Delhi would be automatically blamed.
More fireworks are in the offing when the caretaker government seeks to decide what to do with the nearly 20,000 Maoist soldiers still cooling their heels in cantonments, five years after the peace agreement was signed. Though after protracted stalling the Maoists agreed to free their People's Liberation Army from their control and put it from Saturday under the prime minister-led special committee formed to supervise, integrate and rehabilitate the fighters, the work is not likely to be smooth. The Maoists have already laid down new conditions that the committee be also asked to monitor the entire national army and in the days to come, the question of whether the PLA should be disbanded and how many of them should be recruited in the army are going to be hotly debated issues.
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