BIRATNAGAR, The recent surge in attacks against entrepreneurs has got factory owners on the Sunsari-Morang Corridor fearing for their lives. The murder of Arun Singhaniya less than a month after the killing of another media entrepreneur Jamim Shah has spread alarm among the entrepreneurs here.
"How can we work in such a situation?" asked Dinesh Golchha, chairman of the Chamber of Industry, Morang. "The criminals are taking advantage of the government's passivity. It should be ready to impose a state of emergency to tackle such situations," he added.
Already reeling from endless strikes, bandas, power outages and donation drives, entrepreneurs are now being confronted by the danger of getting killed.
"We are facing additional risks as businessmen have become murder targets," said Mahesh Jaju, president of the Morang Trade Association. "The criminals plan to kill, but the government turns a blind eye to such activities." Another entrepreneur Suyash Pyakuryal said they get death threats if they don't give hefty donations. He added that the security agencies had failed to catch the criminals despite their repeated complaints.
Ramesh Rathi, president of the Youth Entrepreneurs Association, said they were afraid to even pick up the phone because they might receive threatening calls. "Not only underground groups, even the ruling parties are engaged in extorting donations," he added.