Political tensions in the Madhes region have escalated after the decision to investigate the Gaur massacre of 7 Chaitra 2063 (March 21, 2007) in Rautahat. Over 130 people, including JSP leader Upendra Yadav, are now under investigation for their alleged involvement in the violent clash between two political parties that left 27 people dead.
Police have begun searching for the accused. A criminal complaint was filed against 130 individuals, including Yadav. DIG Umaprasad Chaturvedi, chief of Madhes Province police, told AnnapurnaKarmi, “We have already started the investigation process. As part of this, we are collecting three-generation family details of the 130 accused. Preliminary investigations suggest that 11 of them are deceased, but instead of relying solely on hearsay, we are verifying death certificates and investigating their roles on that day.”
The investigation follows a Supreme Court order mandating a probe into the Gaur massacre. Four victims had filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court two years ago, demanding that the complaint lodged at the Gaur District Police Office be pursued. The Bench of Justices Til Prasad Shrestha and Nityananda Pandey issued the directive on 2 Bhadra, instructing the police to proceed accordingly.
Victims had approached the court after alleging that police had not adequately investigated or taken action against those responsible, asserting their constitutional right to justice. The complaint was initially lodged on 28 Chaitra 2068 (2012) at the Gaur police office.
Meanwhile, JSP Nepal, led by Upendra Yadav, claims the Supreme Court order is politically motivated against their leader. JSP leader Jitendra Yadav stated, “This incident has been brought up to lower morale and for political revenge. If the government has the power, let it establish the truth. If it is true, we will respect the court; but if someone is being falsely targeted, the Madhesi people will resist. We must neutralize those attempting political revenge, as tolerating injustice threatens our existence.”
JSP has also accused the state of a conspiracy for not publicly releasing reports from the National Human Rights Commission, international organizations, and other agencies that investigated the Gaur incident.
Nineteen years ago, a violent clash occurred at the Gaur rice mill when the then-Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum, led by Upendra Yadav, and the Maoist-led party of Pushpa Kamal Dahal organized simultaneous rallies at the same place. The clash resulted in the brutal killing of 27 people, including five women, and injured 115 others, according to the National Human Rights Commission.
Initially, a complaint was filed against 66 individuals. A government-formed Gaur incident investigation commission later recommended cases against an additional 64 people, bringing the total number of accused to 130. The Human Rights Commission’s study noted that the local administration failed to provide adequate security arrangements.
The commission’s report also highlighted that Upendra Yadav, then-chairman of the MJAF, and Prabhu Sah, then-general secretary of the Madhesi Mukti Morcha, took no action to prevent the horrific massacre.
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