Kantipur ReportKATHMANDU, Aug 27 - The Young Communist League, the Maoist youth front, has captured the vacant customs office at Rasuwagadi for the last three days and has started collecting "revenue".
YCL activists have been levying ‘duties’ on the import and export of commodities from Tibet, a local trader said. They are charging up to Rs 270 on a good weighing 20 kilograms.
Rasuwadgadi is one of the major customs point along the Nepal-Tibet trade route. Carpets, chocolates, biscuits and clothes are among the goods imported through this customs point.
“Instead of providing any tax waivers or subsidies, they are charging heavy taxes even on commodities for household purposes,” Urgen Ghale from Timure VDC told eKantipur over the phone.
He added that “assistance” is printed on the receipt.
Altogether 13 YCL cadres deployed at the customs office have also been registering names and addresses of the people passing through the customs.
YCL district chairman Nakul said that they took the step to press the government to reinstate the Rasuwagadi customs office, which was shifted to Syaphrubesi following the state of emergency a few years back.
“Smuggling of Himalayan herbs is taking place in absence of the customs office,” Nakul said. “Our cadres will levy customs duty until the customs office is reinstated.”
On the other hand, Police Inspector Lal Bahadur Thami only said that they could not do anything about the development since the Chief District Officer is on a leave and the District Police Chief has been transferred.
Posted on: 2007-08-26 21:00:06 (Server Time)
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