But delve deeper into the tendency, and one finds that it is a culmination of several factors which have collectively become a sort of ‘tipping-point’ for society.
Two factors seem to point towards this trend of increasing mob tendencies: people don't have faith in the administration, or that they don't fear they will get punished.
“This trend has been rapidly increasing for a decade in the absence of justice,” said Gagan Thapa, Constituent Assembly member, said. “There are no cases where people have been punished while becoming involved in criminal acts such as demonstrations or other killings. This has increased the confidence of those who want to commit crime.”
Thapa added, “Political factor is also responsible towards the situation.” Hinting at the recent clash between student wings of two rival parties, he said it's not only about “why the bullet was shot”, but rather the confidence among the groups to “actually fire bullets”.
Human Rights activist Subodh Pyakurel blames the police for not working and political players for making the police weak. He said, “The police are deceiving people by not giving out full information. The police should find out why so many children are being abducted; it's not only for ransom.” According to him, 40% of abductions are for ransom, while the motives of 60% are unclear.
Chief of Metropolitan Police Office, Kathmandu, Navaraj Silwal said, “Impunity is increasing in society due to unemployment and the deprived who feel that it is the best time for revenge.” But, he denies the fact that distrust towards the police has anything to do with it.
He said, “People want to punish the accused themselves, and they feel that arrested culprits will be treated according to the law, which, for others, is sometimes not enough.” Silwal also said that the emotional factor has been high after the murder of Khyati Shrestha.
According to police records, they have been successful in securing the release of the hostage in 27 out of the 29 cases.
Psychologist Ganga Pathak sees the civil war as a factor that led to people being used to hearing news of murder and abduction. She feels political instability is another prominent factor. “The state is in a transitional phase, and the government is not functioning well. This has given space for these kinds of crimes.” She also said that the Nepali people haven't had an ideal political role-model in the past few decades, and “the Maoists coming into the government has also left an impression on society that killing thousands can result in forming the government.”
For civil society, it seems the police must do something to enhance their presence, and must give an impression that crime will be punished. However, Silwal counters this by saying that they have mobilised patrol groups inside the valley regularly. Also, they have been “conducting classes to make students aware about the issue.” Pyakurel has an interesting point; he says, the media sensationalizes such cases, and this has further increased paranoia levels among society.
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