KATHMANDU, April 17 - Even as the Maoist leadership is struggling hard to convince the international community that they will accept multi-party competitive politics and is pledging to fully respect others’ rights; Maoist cadres on the ground continue with their old practices of bullying, intimidating and threatening those belonging to rival parties.

Maoist-affiliated Young Communist League (YCL) on Wednesday barred Nepali Congress (NC) candidate under the proportional representation system Gagan Thapa and his team as they were traveling on a vehicle from going to Madanpur in Nuwakot district, where re-poll is scheduled for Thursday. Thapa and his team were forced to return to Kathmandu after being stopped at Kakani at about 8 pm.

Some 50 YCL cadres had put up obstructions in the form of logs at five various points including in Kakani, Ranipouwa, Paitishkilo and Trishuli along the road leading to Madanpur polling station and selectively allowed vehicles ferrying their our cadres to pass through starting 5 pm.

Talking to the Post, Thapa said he requested the YCL cadres to allow him to go as he was a NC candidate under the proportional electoral system. “I even argued that I had the right to go to Madanpur as an ordinary citizen,” he said, adding, “But they did not give in.”

Thapa complained that a local police did respond to the incident and a team reached there but they were helpless in front of the Maoist cadres. “This clearly shows how the situation of voters is in the place, where the re-poll is taking place,” he said.