Sindhuli ? The locals of Tinkanya village are shocked over the killing of two innocents by the security forces. Bal Bahadur Sarki and Gyan Bahadur Karki were at home celebrating Sangranti when some soldiers dragged them away. The next day, the state radio announced that the two were killed when they attacked security forces with grenades. The news was not only fabricated, but the two also had nothing to do with the Maoists. We tried to discover what their crime was, but found nothing, says a villager. A team of journalists, human rights activists, lawyers and politicians also investigated the killings. The two were found to be ordinary villagers, shot a few hours after their arrest.

Sarki is survived by three young children and a wife. How am I going to bring up my children? asks his widow, Pabimaya. The CDO, Durga Prasad Adhikari, says both were active members of the Maoist local government. The rebel-run FM radio says Sarki and Karki were ordinary villagers and not Maoists.