Indian envoy meets Prachanda over COAS row twice

Kathmandu, Apr 22 (ANI): Indian Ambassador to Nepal Rakesh Sood met Prime Minister Prachnada twice in 24 hours over the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) clarification episode.

During the meeting, which lasted for half an hour, Sood reportedly expressed 'concern' over the government order to Nepal Army chief, seeking his clarification for "challenging civilian supremacy".

General Rookmangud Katawal has submitted his clarification in writing to Cabinet Secretary Bhoj Raj Ghimire.

The clarification was submitted by Nepal Army spokesperson Brigadier General Ramindra Chhettri on behalf of General Katawal.

Defending the charges against him, General Katawal said he has worked according to the laws promulgated by the elected government, the government directives and democratic values.

In his clarification, General Katawal defended the recruitment of 3,010 soldiers in the army saying the army headquarters duly informed the government, the UNMIN and the Joint Monitoring Coordination Committee before initiating the recruitment process, nepalnews reports.

On the reinstatement of eight brigadier generals, the CoAS furnished the argument that he had just complied with the direction of the Supreme Court (SC) by extending the tenure of the Generals who were retired by the government.

General Katawal defended the boycott of events in the Fifth National Games, by stating that the decision was taken after athletes refused to play citing last minute changes in the game's tie set. (ANI)