Kathmandu: In life they were on opposite sides of the deadly violence that convulsed the city this past week; in death, the bodies of policemen and protesters are being cremated side by side at the Pashupatinath Temple Cremation Complex.
Built on the banks of the Bagmati River, the temple is unusually crowded. As funeral pyres burn, family and friends of victims stare blankly, unable to comprehend how life could be snuffed out so quickly.
A group of young Nepalese men is sitting in front of a smouldering pyre. In the middle is 14-year-old Sandeep Bohara, whose brother, 23-year-old Subash Bohara, was killed in the protest.
“My mother called me from India, crying—she said my brother is no more,” said
Sandeep Bohara, his voice steady but quiet. His mother was working in India at the
time, his father having abandoned the family six months ago.
Sandeep’s mother was saving up to send Subash to Japan. Subash was learning Japanese in Kathmandu, preparing to leave the country in search of better opportunities. Well paying jobs are scarce in Nepal, especially for the youth—one of the reasons behind the frustration that drove them to protest.
“He was the oldest son of the house, everything was on his shoulders. The house’s pillar
is now gone,” said 23-year-old Jagat Singh, Subash’s relative. “The government should do something—take care of the younger brother’s studies. That’s our request.”
Jagat and Subash had grown up together. Singh recalled how one day they both left
their village to come to Kathmandu. “I was feeling cold and he gave me his shirt. I still have that shirt,” said Singh, adding that Subash was very large-hearted. “He didn’t want anyone to be sad. He thought about our country.”
Subash’s childhood friend, Himal Khadka remembers his friend as calm and forward thinking. “Our hearts will always remember the sacrifices of these martyrs. Their memories will unite our nation,” he said, adding that their legacy will be respected by generations.
Next to Subash’s pyre, another burns equally bright. Uttam Thapa, who
was killed near Maharajgunj Police Circle, is being cremated along with two other
policemen who lost their lives in the protests. The last rites with full honours have
ended, the crowd has dispersed.
23-year-old Kiran Pujara sits alone opposite the pyre. Thapa was his uncle, from
their hometown of Dhangadhi. Pujara was in his room in Kathmandu when he
heard the devastating news.
“My mother called me and warned me not to watch a video that had gone viral,” said Pujara, who is studying and learning Japanese in the hope of moving abroad. “But I watched it. They beat him so bad, what can I say… I just started crying.”
Thapa leaves behind a young wife and mother. But most of his family couldn’t make it to Kathmandu for the cremation. Travel from Dhangadhi was difficult given the military curfew and lack of public transport.
“He was a very humble, innocent man. He didn’t want to harm anyone,” recalls Pujara,
adding that Thapa had no children.
Talking about the protests that shook Nepal, Pujara now wonders if all the death and destruction was worth it. “I would rather it didn’t happen at all,” he said. “Someone else sinned, but another person’s life was taken away.”
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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