To the south, India worries that it could give both inspiration and training to rebels in its own states of Bihar and Andra Pradesh. But in Nepal itself, there is little consensus about what to do. But these Maoists have taken over a third of the country. They have a parallel government. They collect taxes.
Nobody knows, and what is strange, nobody seems to care.
Maoist platoons active in the area attend a day-long rally attended by thousands in Mankha village in Nepal. Party officials did not allow their members' faces to be photographed. A spate of killings last month may have finally changed all that. At present, Nepal has a police force, armed only with bamboo sticks, and an army, which specifically fights external enemies. The general public is looking for stronger leadership.