'Koirala did not seek India's help'
KATHMANDU, JUNE 17. Immediately after the June 1 massacre, the Nepalese Prime Minister, Mr. Girija Prasad Koirala, had called his Indian counterpart, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, apprehending that it was a military coup and the latter offered him military assistance, if necessary, a report in a pro-left local weekly has said. But this has been dismissed as ``baseless'' by both the Nepal Government and the Indian Embassy here.
Quoting sources close to the Nepal Home Minister, Mr. Ramchandra Poudel, the report in the weekly Samadrisht alleged that as soon as Mr. Koirala was informed about the shooting by the palace secretary on the fateful Friday night, he called Mr. Poudel instead of rushing to the palace. Thereafter, he telephoned Mr. Vajpayee and briefed him about his apprehension that it could be a coup carried out by the army.
Mr. Vajpayee assured him (Koirala) that ``if needed, India would send its Army and Air Force,'' the report said, adding that Mr. Vajpayee called a meeting of top defence officials to discuss the situation in the Himalayan kingdom. However, on getting some details of the incident, Mr. Koirala later called up Mr. Vajpayee and urged him not to send any forces, but keep them as stand-by for any emergency, the report alleged.
When contacted, Nepal's Foreign Minister, Mr. Chakra Prasad Bastola, said ``such newspapers always carry wild allegations and I do not want to talk about it.''
Terming the report as ``baseless,'' a senior Indian Embassy official said ``these ultra-left papers are always on the lookout for India-bashing. They do not have any credibility.''
`No trace of alcohol'
A senior military doctor has claimed that no trace of alcohol was found in the blood samples of late crown prince Dipendra, accused of committing the June 1 palace massacre under the influence of liquor and drugs, a newspaper report said.
Brig. (Dr.) Khagendra Bahadur Shreshtha, who carried out the brain operation of late Dipendra had told the panel probing the incident that no trace of alcohol was found in his blood during the surgery, the Nepalese weekly, Deshantar Saptahik, said.
- PTI