Force and power forcing the police: Who will listen to the pain of the cooperative victims?

Bhagwati Thapa says that her husband lost his life because of the movement. "One was worried that the money was trapped, she even went to the protest to see if it was returned," she said, "My husband was taken away by the co-operative, how many more lives will be taken." Where to go to get justice? Who will be judged? How many more places do we have to run?'

Vimala Nepali, who lives in Tundikhel, Pokhara, started a protest along with other savers after Suryadarshan, which started to have problems since the beginning of 2079. In the same year, on February 25, the co-operative victims reached Pokhara Metropolitan City and expressed their pain. She collapsed in the metropolis while narrating the pain of not being able to follow up her 10-year-old daughter with heart disease, and having to bear the torture of her husband when her savings failed. He was immediately taken to Fistel Hospital in Pokhara. The doctor said it was due to stress.

In order for their sufferings to be heard, the cooperative victims showed a black flag to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal who came to Pokhara on May 23. 75-year-old Bhim Prasad Chapai was injured when the police arrested him. He had saved 20 lakh rupees in Suryadarshan, which he had saved in his old age by selling land, and came down from Sarangkot to Pokhara to complain to the Prime Minister. Anuradha Shrestha from Pokhara, who reached every movement of the co-opted victims, was also unconscious for a while by the police. Both of them were sent to Pokhara Institute of Health Sciences for treatment. Police arrested 11 other cooperative victims.

The victims of Suryadarshan Cooperative have already met with all the leaders and officials in the hope of getting back the savings. However, sometimes they have to suffer the blows of police sticks and boots while expressing their grievances, sometimes they are not allowed to enter through the door of the court.

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Suryadarshan stopped exchanging checks of large amounts from May 2079 when the problem started. He could not return even 5-10 thousand since June. The counter itself was closed at the end of June. The members of the board of directors became uncontactable. After several attempts, the owner Gitendrababu (GB) Rai came to Pokhara on November 20. The 15th general meeting of the cooperative was held on November 12. He threatened the savers by saying that if they could not return the money, they would give the land in the name of the organization. In January-January, the money of savers who had 5-10 thousand rupees was returned, but later it was stopped. After that, he and the officers of the board of directors were out of touch.

Victim savers organized in January 2079 after realizing that their savings were at risk and that the board of directors had repeatedly bent them. A struggle committee was formed under the leadership of Krishna Jaisi. The Sangharsh Committee submitted a letter of attention to the Pokhara Metropolitan Cooperative Division, Authority, District Administration, Police, Chief Minister's Office, Parliament Secretariat. There was no solution. 'The state system is so weak and weak that there is no government,' said Jaisi, 'even though thousands of savers' billions of rupees are at risk, the government could not do anything.' It had decided to freeze assets, bank accounts and travel abroad. On 14th May 2080, the victim submitted a letter of attention to UML, Congress, Maoist, RASWP, United Samajwadi Party, Nepal Samajwadi Party, demanding to take initiative to solve the problem. One hundred and ten savers reached Kathmandu on May 19. Treasurer Kumar Ramtel promised to give land to the victim and returned it. Although the victim asked to show the 'loan seat' of the cooperative, the treasurer did not provide it.

Victim savers went to Chitwan, Itahari, Kathmandu and Bhairahawa to see the land. However, they could not agree because the price of the land was higher. The victim submitted a memorandum on July 27 when Raswap MP Tosima Karki came to Pokhara. On June 12, the owners Rai and Kumar Ramtel came to Pokhara. Rai returned to Kathmandu after agreeing to continue the cooperative and gradually return the money to the savers. However, the treasurer Ramtel did not provide the necessary documents requested by the cooperative division of the metropolis. After returning from Pokhara, after losing contact again, the victim came to the conclusion of filing a complaint and moving forward.

In July last year, after 1,035 savers including Krishna Jaisi filed a complaint, the metropolis and the police formed an investigation committee and prepared a report. After the report, the police registered a case against 19 people through the public prosecutor's office. Among them, only 5 people including vice president Kailash Kumar Darlami, treasurer Kumar Ramtel have been arrested.

After the name of Ravi Lamichhane, president of RSWP, was also mentioned in the report, the victims reached the police office on January 16 to file a supplementary complaint against 80 people including him and various individuals and companies. However, the police returned it saying that there was no evidence. On January 21, the victim filed a complaint against 4 individuals and 14 companies, including Lamichhane. On that day too, the police refused. On January 22, the police accepted the complaint but gave a different registration number. The police said that since the case of Suryadarshan fraud is going on in the court, there will be no new complaint and it will remain as part of the old complaint.

On the basis of the application submitted for the second time by the victim, Suryadarshan was subjected to a supplementary investigation. A committee consisting of expert team of Pokhara Mahanagara Sahakari Samiti, police and representatives of savers made a supplementary investigation and submitted a report to the police on May 27. But the report has not been made public yet.

In the hope of getting back the savings, the victim has met every party leader from the Prime Minister and submitted a memorandum. They submitted the memorandum on December 6, 2080 when Lamichhane came to Pokhara. He said that since his name is also in the report of the metropolis, it should be clarified. He also stopped the victim savers who were prepared to show black flag in the next day's program by saying that he was not involved in cooperative fraud and was with the victim.

Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba on January 9, then Home Minister Narayankaji Shrestha on January 11, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on March 4 and UML President KP Oli on March 23 submitted memorandums when they came to Pokhara. On March 27, he gave a memorandum to Home Minister Lamichhane and Cooperative Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation Minister Balram Adhikari. 6 political parties active in Kaski demonstrated on the streets in favor of the cooperative victims.

Suryadarshanpidit Prem Regmi does not miss any movement and demonstration against co-operative fraud. Be it on the day of dharna at the police office or the day of the filing of a case in the district court, he always arrives. "Whether it's to do my business or to go to the movement, I still walk," he says. On the contrary, we should eat the sticks and boots of the administration.'

He has not dared to teach nursing to his daughter, who has just passed SEE, after the savings are stuck. As he was unable to pay the fees of his son's previous school, he was transferred to another school. "It's a time of recession, savings are stuck on top of that," he said.

After the attorney general's office issued a letter against Home Minister Ravi Lamichhaneka, the case against it is now going on in the Supreme Court. The victim savers who went from Pokhara to participate in the hearing in the said case on June 4 could not enter the Supreme Court premises. "It has already been said that victims of Suryadarshan should not be allowed to enter if they come," said Kiran Shrestha, coordinator of the struggle committee, "Shouldn't the door of the place of justice be open for the victims?"

18 thousand 700 savers of Suryadarshan Savings and Loan Cooperative in Pokhara-4 Nalamukh have been robbed of 1 billion 35 crore 53 lakh 54 thousand 899 rupees. Only 5 people have been arrested as the public prosecutor's office prosecuted 19 people in the co-operative fraud case. Kailash Kumar Darlami, the vice president of the cooperative, Kumar Ramtel, the treasurer, Pramod Bhattarai, member of the board of directors, Shiv Bahadur Gurung, the former board member of the board of directors, and Bhavishwar Aryal, the head of the RET, are in custody in the Kaski jail.