A police report was prepared that implicated the then Land Reforms and Management Minister Prabhu Sah, his personal secretary Siyaram Kushwaha, and Aman Kushwaha in the Kashi Tiwari murder. However, the District Attorney's Office withdrew it and asked for Sah's name to be removed. Siyaram, who was tried in court, was acquitted.
What you should know
In April 2067, when there was uncertainty about whether or not the Constituent Assembly would draft a constitution, the then Unified CPN (Maoist) had declared a nationwide general strike. Maoist leaders and activists had taken to the streets in an aggressive manner. The general strike had affected normal life in Birgunj as well.
On the fourth day of the general strike, some people in the name of Hindu Yuva Sangh came out in Birgunj to counter the general strike. They vandalized and set fire to a mess run by the Maoists for leaders and workers who were deployed for the general strike. Then, Kashiram Tiwari, 45, of Ashok Batika, Birgunj-13, suddenly came into the news. Although those who were affected by the general strike felt relieved after that incident, Tiwari became a target of the Maoists.
On 12 Ashad 2067, around 5 pm, Tiwari had gone to visit the Dharamshala at the Shiva Parvati Temple in Ashok Batika, Birgunj. Three masked men approached him. One of them fired three bullets at Tiwari. Tiwari collapsed on the spot. Tiwari was being talked to by the temple priest when the bullets were fired at him.
The masked men had parked their motorcycle in front of the ice factory outside the temple premises. As they were walking towards the spot, locals tried to take them under control, but they were deterred when they pointed a pistol at them and threatened to kill them. The Hindu Youth Association affiliated with Tiwari had claimed that the then Maoist leader Prabhu Sah, currently the president of the Aam Janata Party (AJP), and his aide Siyaram Kushwaha were involved in the murder.
Birgunj heated up again after Tiwari's murder. His body was displayed. 48 hours after the murder, the District Police Office Parsa initiated an investigation against the then Maoist lawmaker Prabhu Sah, Siyaram Kushwaha, Bhojpura Uprajya Samiti member Zalim Miya, local activists Umesh Patel, Santosh Giri, Suresh Patel and Mukesh Patel. After that, Tiwari's last rites were performed.
Although the Parsa police registered a complaint, they were unable to make an arrest at the behest of the power center. A year after the murder, SP Ramesh Kharel came to command the Parsa police. Aman Kushwaha alias Rohit, who was arrested from Nijgadh in Bara on Kharel's plan, revealed Siyaram's involvement in Tiwari's murder. At that time, Siyaram was the personal secretary of Land Reforms and Management Minister Prabhu Sah.
'Siyaram alias Feroze shot Tiwari,' Aman had told the Parsa police in his statement, 'I was driving the motorcycle used in the murder.' Aman said that he left after Siyaram, from Rautahat Jamnuya, offered him two hundred thousand rupees.
Fifteen months after Tiwari's murder, the Parsa police prepared a report against the then Land Reforms and Management Minister Sah, his personal secretary Siyaram, and Aman Kushwaha. Sah then resigned from the post of minister. The Parsa police report was returned by the District Government Attorney's Office. Sah's name was then removed. The Government Attorney's Office filed a case against Siyaram and Aman in court.
The then Chief District Officer of Parsa, Nagendra Jha, had alleged that a ‘professional criminal’ was involved in Tiwari’s murder. Tiwari’s wife, Babita, had alleged that Jha, when he was the executive director of the Land Management Training Center, had given him a bribe of Rs 800,000 and made him say ‘I don’t know the killer’. ‘Jha called me to his house and gave me the money,’ Babita had said, ‘He even taught me to say I don’t know who my husband’s killer was.’
The Parsa District Court acquitted Siyaram. Aman was sentenced to 10 years in prison. The government prosecutor’s office appealed to the High Court against the district court’s decision to acquit him. On 28 Falgun 2074, the temporary bench of the Janakpur High Court, Birgunj, sentenced Siyaram to life imprisonment with all his assets on the Tiwari murder charge. At that time, Siyaram was the head of the Kataharia Municipality of Rautahat. The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of the police arrested Siyaram from Kathmandu on 27 Baisakh 2075.
Siyaram went to the Supreme Court. On 13 Paush 2075, a bench of Supreme Court judges Sharda Ghimire and Dambar Shahi acquitted him. After being acquitted, Siyaram landed in the Katahariya municipality, where he is the head, by helicopter. The municipality declared a public holiday in joy at his acquittal. Aman, on the other hand, has been released after serving about seven years in prison.
Tiwari's family is complaining that they have not received justice. Tiwari's wife Babita says that the killer was released under the guise of politics. 'Justice has not been received. I am very sad. No one helped,' Babita told Kantipur on Thursday, 'At that time, the police helped a lot. Now the file must have been shelved. It is difficult to run a household. I am tired of fighting for justice.'
