The Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) and Nepal Press Council have expressed concerns over the continued suspension of Nepal Samacharpatra and Mahanagar dailies in the face of pressure exerted by pro-Maoist trade union.

The publishing of two dailies by Kamana Publications have remained suspended from Wednesday.

The Publications has said that it is unable to publish the newspapers because of obstruction posed by distributors.

Issuing separate statements, FNJ and Council have urged for peaceful settlement of dispute.

“It can never be considered normal when publication of a newspaper is stopped. While we respect the right of trade union, forceful stopping of any publication is very worrying. In press, there are genuine concerns of the need to maintain neutrality and professionalism,” said Shiva Gaunle, vice president of FNJ.

The Council has said that stopping the publication under any pretext is a direct attack on press freedom.

The All Nepal Media, Press and Publications Workers Association, Kamana Publication Unit, however, has said that the management has ignored their genuine demands and have unilaterally stopped publication.

Shambhu Rimal, vice president of the association said that they are only exercising their legal rights and accused the management of not recognising their union.

Pushkar Lal Shrestha, executive chairman of the Publications, has said that he cannot register the union from an independent company. The distributors of the Publications work on contract through another company called Customer Solution. “Besides, barging into a Publication House carrying political banners that proclaim Marxism, Leninism, Maoism and Prachandapath will compromise our credibility as an independent watchdog,” Shrestha said.