Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha – Jaya Krishna Goit (JTMM-G)

Formation

The Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM) was formed in July 2004 by Jaya Krishna Goit after splitting from the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-Maoist). Goit, formerly a leader of the Unified Marxist Leninist (UML), was also co-ordinator of the Madhesi National Liberation Front of the CPN-Maoist. Gradually, as he came to believe that the Maoists were not serious about the development of the Terai region, he floated a separate outfit charging the Maoist leadership of betraying the Madhesi people.

Objective

JTMMM-G demands an independent state for the Madhesis in the Terai region. He believes that Terai was never a part of Nepal; rather it was annexed by the Nepali pahade (hill people) rulers and then parts of it were ceded to them by the British through treaties. Thus, he says that, his armed struggle is meant to correct the historical wrong committed by the Nepali rulers.

Leadership and Command Structure

JTMM-G is led by its founder Jaya Krishna Goit. The cadre strength of the JTMM-G remains difficult to estimate, though unconfirmed reports suggest a support base of a thousand, including hard-core cadres and sympathisers. The Goit faction functions with a central committee, East and West Terai Regional Bureaus, village, ward and cell committees and a parallel military organisation.

Areas of Activity

The JTMM-G is mainly active in the Terai region bordering India, particularly, in the districts of Siraha, Dhanusha, Morang, Sarlahi, Bara, Saptari, Mohattari, Lalitpur and Rautahat.

Incidents involving JTMM-G

2008

March 7: Cadres of the Akhil Terai Mukti Morcha (ATMM) - the group formerly known as JTMM-G - set ablaze a vehicle belonging to the Kantipur daily newspaper at Babhanagamakatti village of Saptari district. The jeep carrying newspapers for distribution was stopped by seven cadres of ATMM and was set ablaze destroying the jeep as well as 30,000 pieces of newspapers. The driver of the vehicle, Chandra Katuwal, and distribution staff, Gangaram Bhandari, were also injured in the incident.

March 2: JTMM-G changed its party's name to All Terai Liberation Front (ATLF). The JTMM-G central coordinator, Goit, said that the name of the party has been changed so as to be distinct from other factions of JTMM.

March 1: JTMM-G cadres killed Gokarna Kandel, a Nepali Congress leader, near his house in the Rupandehi district.

February 27: Two persons were injured when cadres of the JTMM-G attacked a passenger bus, which was part of a convoy of vehicles coming from Kathmandu under a police escort for security, with petrol bombs in the Golbazaar area of Siraha district.

February 17: The Bara-Parsa districts coordinator of the JTMM-G, Binod Mahato, was shot dead by an unidentified group at Bairganiyaa Bazaar in Bihar in India.

February 7: cadres of the JTMM-G shot dead an elderly person, Keshab Bahadur Gurung, in the Rupandehi district. Gurung, a canteen owner at Sukha Bandargaha in Bagaha VDC, was reportedly killed on charge of spying against the JTMM-G.

February 4: JTMM-G published a list of 37 persons of Sunsari district and threatened to initiate 'physical action' them. 'Physical action' ranges from physical assaults to murder. The list includes names of person from various walks of life such as civil servants, teachers and entrepreneurs.

January 30: Police arrested the Siraha district commander of the JTMM-G, Prithvi Lal Yadav alias Jasho Lal.

2007

November 5: Cadres of the JTMM-G shot and injured Hari Parajuli, an overseer with the District Development Committee in Bara district. JTMM-G’s Bara district chief, Birat, owned up the responsibility for the attempt on Parajuli’s life.

November 3: Cadres of the JTMM-G abducted Surya Prasad Shah, a former VDC chairman in Saptari district. JTMM-G cadres also seized six bighas of land belonging to Shah in Ward No 8 in Deuri VDC-7 and also took away a motorbike.

October 27: Armed JTMM-G cadres abducted Suresh Prasad Sharma, an officer at the Agriculture Development Bank in Nawalparasi district, from his house at Ragopur VDC-9 of Siraha district and took him away at gunpoint.

October 8: JTMM-G cadres shot dead Ram Babu Sharma Neupane, the Khutawa Parsauni Village Development Committee (VDC) secretary of Bara district.

October 1: Police arrested four cadres of the JTMM-G along with some weapons in Janakpur.

September 19: JTMM-G cadres abducted five civilians from the Rautahat district including Ramlochan Sah, former vice-chairman of Ramauli Bairiya VDC, CPN-UML activist Nagendra Prasad Patel, Junior Technical Assistant at Garuda sugar mill Shankar Sah, and two other residents of Ramauli Bairiya VDC.

September 2: Cadres of the JTMM-G shot dead a youth, Lal Babu Shah Sonar, at Jayanagar in the Rautahat district accusing him of spying against their party and being involved in looting, raping and killing people.

August 16: Cadres of the JTMM-G set ablaze two vehicles for violating their call for a general strike at Bhaliya area in the Bara district.

July 31: A group of six to seven armed JTMM-G cadres abducted a civilian, identified as Rajendra Prasad Kanu, from his home at Khophahawa VDC-2 and killed him some 200 meters away from his home.

July 30: JTMM-G cadres abducted and subsequently shot dead a person, identified as Shanker Man Singh Basnet, at Bariyarpur in the Bara district.

July 21: A group of armed JTMM-G cadres shot dead a local Maoist leader Binod Mallik at Bisarbhora in the Dhanusha district.

July 15: JTMM-G cadres killed a Maoist insurgent, identified as Ganga Yadav, at Baspatti in the Motihari area of Siraha district.

June 13: Cadres of the JTMM-G abducted two persons, Lila Bahadur Shrestha and his wife Kamala Shrestha, from the Diman area of Saptari district.

June 12: JTMM-G cadres abducted and subsequently killed a central-level leader of the Maoists and a central member of the Maoist-affiliated All Nepal Peasants Association (Revolutionary), identified as Dasarath Thakur a.k.a. Rohit, in the Saptari district.

June 8: Cadres of the JTMM-G abducted a civilian, identified as Chitra Bahadur Pant a.k.a. Bishnu, of Chatari Bananiya VDC-6 in the Siraha district.

June 4: An armed group of the JTMM-G shot dead Munna Kumar Jaiswal, an area committee member of the CPN-Maoist, at Kalahi Jagadi in the Pipra Basantapur VDC area of Bara district.

February 23: Six persons were injured in a clash between Maoists and the activists of the JTMM-G when the Maoists tried to open shops at Sarmujawa bazaar in the Rautahat district.