Entrepreneurs harassed by donation seekers
BIRATNAGAR, MAR 11 -
Entrepreneurs based in the Morang-Sunsari Industrial Corridor have been constantly harassed by forced donation drives launched by different political parties and groups.
Underground armed groups, major political parties, their sister organisations, youth clubs or religious associations, all of them are extracting money from industrialists and traders for their funding.
In the last four months, an estimated Rs 15 million was openly collected in donation drives launched by different groups and associations. However, industrialists and business men here have not been able to speak out against the forced contributions which have become a kind of tradition in recent years.
Sources said that the Nepal Bar Association had collected Rs 1.5 million in donations from the industrial corridor three months ago to organise a workshop on human rights. The CPN-Maoist had raised over Rs 1 million for its convention held in January. The UCPN (Maoists) had also collected around Rs 500,000 for its general convention held in Hetauda last month, according to sources. Similarly, the Rs 1.1 million bill incurred by the visit of spiritual guru Ravi Shankar to Biratnagar was picked up by business men.
According to CPN-UML Morang, it collected more than Rs 1 million in donations for its district-level convention. UML district chief Mahesh Regmi said that since the party had no income source, people who love the party had been paying its expenses. He added that since it was not always possible to run a party with other people’s support, all the parties had to look for a permanent solution for their funding.
Yuva Sangh Nepal, Press Chautari Nepal and Nepal Itihas Sangh had also collected donations from the business community to hold their national conventions and gatherings. Industrialists said that the private sector already suffering from load-shedding and labour unrest had been further hit by growing demand for donations.
A source said underground groups and Diren-dra Yadav, an Indian criminal who had escaped from the Sunsari regional jail, had also been demanding money from business men. Normally, traders first receive an application for a donation; and if they decline, threats follow.
Meanwhile, in an effort to prevent crime and donation demands, the government and business organizations have joined forces to install CCTV cameras in the bazaar areas of Biratnagar with an investment of Rs 7.8 million.
The Morang District Development Committee and Biratnagar Sub-metropolitan City each have provided Rs 2 million to install the cameras. Traders, industrialists, banks and financial institutions have also chipped in. “We do not have updated records on the resources accumulated so far, but we are doing it with a good reason,” said Abhinash Bohara, president of the Morang Merchants’ Association.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
