Kathmandu, Dec 14: The Supreme Court has ordered police to move ahead with investigations into the 18-year-old Gaur killings, one of Nepal’s most notorious political violence cases. The order came after a hearing on a writ petition seeking investigation and legal action against those involved. The court had issued the directive on Bhadra 2, 2082, and made the full text of the verdict public this week.
With the ruling now in force, senior political figures, including former deputy prime minister and then Madheshi Janadhikar Forum chair Upendra Yadav, are likely to come under investigation. The National Human Rights Commission had earlier instructed the government to probe Yadav and others named in complaints and inquiry reports.
In its order, the Supreme Court directed the Rautahat District Police Office and other concerned agencies to immediately pursue the investigation and reach a proper conclusion, based on a complaint filed by Triyuvhan Sah and others. Sah is among those injured in the Gaur incident. Families of the deceased and the injured had approached the court, arguing that police failed to act despite formal complaints being registered.
The court questioned the police for not pursuing investigations even after complaints were filed for mass murder. It ruled that such inaction violated duties set out in the Criminal Procedure Code 2017. The bench of Justices Til Prasad Shrestha and Nityananda Pandey said police cannot ignore registered complaints and remain inactive.
Upendra Yadav is a central figure linked to the 2007 Gaur incident. He later served multiple times as minister and deputy prime minister and now leads the Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal. Several studies and inquiry reports have pointed to his role in the violence and recommended investigation and prosecution.
Following the Supreme Court order, Yadav is almost certain to fall under the probe. The Human Rights Commission had earlier named him directly and called for legal action based on findings of the Gaur Incident Investigation Commission formed in 2007. Yadav’s name appears on the official list of individuals identified for investigation.
The Gaur violence occurred on Chaitra 7, 2063, at Ricesmill ground in Gaur, Rautahat. Clashes between cadres of the Madheshi Janadhikar Forum and Maoist affiliated Madheshi Mukti Morcha left 27 Maoist activists dead, though victims’ families claim the toll was 28. More than 100 people were injured. Both sides had scheduled programs at the same location on the same day, despite requests from the district administration to reschedule.
According to the Human Rights Commission report, Forum cadres vandalized the Maoist stage, which later escalated into gunfire and clashes. The report states that Maoist activists were chased, captured, and killed in a planned and brutal manner. Postmortem reports recorded severe head injuries and attacks on sensitive body parts. Some bodies were found several kilometers away, and some were reportedly burned or paraded after death.
The Supreme Court strongly criticized police conduct, stating that treating complaint registration and investigation as optional weakens victims’ right to justice. The court said blocking investigations after complaints are filed promotes impunity.
It clarified that while prosecutors may decide not to file cases if evidence is lacking, police have no authority to halt investigations at the complaint stage. With the full verdict now public, police are no longer left in doubt. The investigation into the Gaur killings is no longer optional, it is mandatory.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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