Part I: Rautahat Brick Kiln Massacre

On April 9, 2008, Gauri Shankar Ram Chamar from Sitamadhi, Bihar, India had gone to meet Mohammad Aftab Alam to receive his wage. Chamar arrived at the residence of Sheikh Idrus in Rajpur and waited alongside 16 people in a cowshed. The stove bomb blast took place at 6:30 pm making many people injured. 

Chamar suffered injuries in his ear, neck, and chest that started bleeding. He ran 700m. in panic before losing consciousness. Badriram a resident of Jingadiya had taken him to the hospital and remained in a coma for 20 days. Chamar's injuries were treated at Sitamarhi Sadar Hospital, Bihar, India. 

He found himself in the hospital bed when he woke up. He also found Naresh Ram and Bikau Ram receiving treatment at the hospital. The report states that Chamar and Safi Mohammad were the only witnesses who survived the explosion. 

In the unfortunate event, 14 people died and 8 were injured. According to an eyewitness, Aftab Alam is accused of having packed the injured persons in sacks, dumping their bodies in a brick kiln fire, and killing them.

Mohammad Aftab Alam was not seen as a notorious gangster but rather was publicly perceived as a politician who later became Minister for Labor and Transport Management. 

So, why would a prominent politician from a renowned party commit such a heinous crime or be accused of such an act? What was his motivation to lead such action? Specifically, before the First Constituent Assembly election that was held on May 12, 2008. Why wasn’t a politician scared of such a scandal? 

In 2008, Nepal was going through a turbulent time, the civil war had recently stopped and an armed Maoist rebel was competing in a democratic election. During that period- political violence, intimidation, and voting irregularities were widespread and Mohammad Aftab Alam was no exception. 

Mohammad Aftab Alam belonged to a moderate democratic party but had taken extreme action. Alam dumping their bodies in a brick kiln fire and killing them. 

It emerged they were making bombs to create terror during the Constituent Assembly in order to secure Alam’s poll win. He won in the First Constituent Assembly election in May 12, 2008, from Rautahat Constituency 2 from Nepali Congress.

On April 30, 2008, Rukshana Khatun Filed a case against Alam, and on June 23 Shree Narayan Singh also filed a case against Alam. DAO Rautahat presents a report to the District Attorney’s Office. On July 14, 2008, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) decided not to file any case against Alam. However, the complaints did deter him or his party from making him a Minister. 

On May 29, 2012, the Supreme Court revoked the decision of OAG and ordered a proper investigation. Alam lost the second Constituent Assembly in 2013 but this was not the beginning of his downfall. 

Alam won the first federal election in 2017 from Rautahat Constituency-2. It is believed that people in power become immune and do not get prosecuted for their crimes. 

Nepal has a unique track record, it has a track record of not just jailing parliamentarians but also arresting sitting ministers namely Communication Minister Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta. Gupta belonged to the Madeshi People’s Rights Forum (Republican). 

It should be noted that Gupta belonged to an ethnic minority party while  Alam also an ethnic minority belonged to one of the oldest and most well-established parties in the country. Alam’s case will be further discussed in Part II.