Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has issued a writ of mandamus directing police to investigate the infamous Gaur incident of 2007.
A division bench of Justices Til Prasad Shrestha and Nityanand Pandey issued the order on Friday, hearing a petition demanding an inquiry and necessary action in the Gaur incident in Rautahat, in which Upendra Yadav, the chairperson of the Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) Nepal, is also implicated.
According to Supreme Court Spokesperson Nirajan Pandey, the mandamus has been issued in the name of the District Police Office, Rautahat.
Relatives of the victims had filed the writ in the apex court, seeking investigation and punishment for those responsible for the Gaur killings that occurred 19 years ago. They had previously filed complaints with the District Police Office, Rautahat. But since the police did not start an investigation, they knocked on the court’s doors.
The incident occurred in March 2007, when the then-Madhesi Janadhikar Forum, led by Yadav, and the then-Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) insisted on holding programs at the same venue—the Gaur Rice Mill premises—leading to clashes.
The clashes resulted in the deaths of 27 Maoist cadres. There were allegations that people brought from across the Indian border were involved in the clash. Some bodies were found away from the incident site as well.
Upendra Yadav and other leaders of the Forum have long been accused of being involved in the Gaur killings.
Earlier in April last year, the apex court had sought written clarification from the District Police Office and the District Government Attorney’s Office in Rautahat for not investigating the incident of mass killing.
