 | | "The intention with which the attack was carried out. it would never be realized," Koirala said. (Reuters) | KATHMANDU — A bomb attack on a mosque in Nepal's second biggest city drew immediate condemnation from the government and political parties, while Muslim leaders urged self-restraint to foil attempts to ignite religious tension. "The intention with which the attack was carried out would never be realized," said Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, referring to the April 10 parliamentary elections, reported the Nepalnews.com website. "This kind of violent incident will have no effect on the election to the Constituent Assembly." Two Muslims were killed and others were injured when two men on a motorcycle threw four bombs at Choti mosque in Biratnagar, 200 km southeast of the capital Kathmandu, late on Saturday, March 29. Three of the bombs exploded inside the mosque while more than five dozens of Muslims were performing their evening prayers. In a statement sent to media outlets, a Hindu extremist group called the Nepal Defense Army claimed responsibility saying it "would continue such attacks until Nepal is reinstated as a Hindu nation." The NDA, a shadowy group that first emerged last year, said it was preparing an army of suicide bombers to achieve its goal of a Hindu kingdom in Nepal. Nepal was the world's only Hindu state till 2006 when the parliament amended the constitution and declared it a secular state. Since then violence has escalated amid a widespread angry over the move among the Hindu majority. According to the CIA World Fact Book, Hindus make up 80 percent of Nepal's 28 million population while Muslims constitute 4.2 percent. Calm Calls The UN Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) condemned the mosque attack which sought to undermine communal harmony in the impoverished Asian monarchy. "I condemn in the strongest terms the bomb attack at a mosque at Sarauchiya in Biratnagar and extend condolences to the families of those who died and to those who are injured," UNMIN Chief Ian Martin said in a statement. "I have no doubt that this deliberate targeting of a place of religious worship will outrage Nepalis of all communities." Following the attack, thousands of angry Muslims took to the streets bringing transportation service to a complete halt and leading the government to announce a curfew in the city till Sunday morning. But leaders of the minority urged fellow Muslims to exercise restraint in this hour of sorrow. "We are trying to ensure that this will not lead to bigger conflict or communal violence," Jafar Ahmad Jamali of the Muslim Ethihad Organization told the Associated Press on Sunday. "We have urged everyone to be on alert so there is no outbreak of communal violence." Most of Nepal's Muslims live in the southern plains on the borders with India. Residents of impoverished southern belt say they have long been excluded from Kathmandu's corridors of power and want increased representation in the government and army. | 
