The Nepal Petroleum Dealers Association (NPDA) has asked the Maoists to clarify if seizing private properties was their party policy.

Holding a press conference in the capital on Wednesday, the NPDA has condemned the Maoists for seizing nine petroleum products carriers from Dang on February 24and one tanker looted from Siraha and urged the Maoists to immediately return the oil tankers.

“The Maoists have seized nine tankers carrying petroleum products on February 24. Earlier the Maoists have said that they would return the tankers, if they belong to private organisations but later they distributed some contents of the tankers and some they destroyed,” said president of NPDA Shiva Prasad Ghimire.

The petroleum dealers have lost petroleum products worth about seven million rupees and acts like this would discourage the entrepreneurs, he said.

He informed of a 30 percent reduction in the supply of fossil fuels following the Maoists act of capturing oil-tankers in Dang and Siraha districts.

Ghimire further said that the entrepreneurs were purchasing petroleum products only from the Thankot due to the prevailing insecure environment. As per the new rules of the government, the entrepreneurs were supposed to purchase petroleum products from Amlekhgunj depot.