There has been an explosion at the residence of Assistant Minister for General Administration, Toran Bahadur Gurung, at Samakhusi in Kathmandu on Saturday evening.
According to police, explosion took place at around 7:50 p. m. at the residence of the junior minister. There has been minor damage to the vehicle parked inside the residential complex but nobody was injured.
Assistant Minister Gurung stays at the ministerial quarter at Pulchowk along with his family.
Police said an investigation was underway. Nobody has claimed responsibility for the explosion but police blame the Maoist rebels for the incident.
Meanwhile, the Home Ministry said on Saturday that security has been tightened in Kathmandu and other districts in view of possible Maoist offensive in the capital.
No details were provided.
The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday upheld Section 9 of the Terrorists and Disruptive Activities (Control and Punishment) Ordinance of 2005 that authorises the government to slap a person in preventive detention for up to a year without prosecution or trial.
Acting upon a writ petition filed by advocate Raju Prashad Chapagain and Prakash Mani Sharma, the joint bench of the Supreme Court comprising justices Khil Raj Regmi, Gauri Dhakal and Bal Ram KC delivered a divided verdict, according to reports.
Quashing a writ petition questioning the constitutionality of the provision on the ground that it was against human rights, a bench comprising justices Regmi and Dhakal said, “The provision is in tune with the Constitution as per the Public Security Act promulgated by parliament that entertains preventive detention by the authorities.”
Justices Regmi and Dhakal said that the Act does not contradict the Constitution as statute allows taking a person into preventive custody if that person construes a threat to the sovereignty, integrity or the law and order situation of the country.
Differing on this point, Justice KC said the provision contravenes the Constitution inasmuch as the law is concerned with terms of punishment.
KC further said that if the provision were not declared contradictory to the constitution, the state could both prosecute and keep citizens in preventive detention at the same time.
The SC also upheld the terrorist tag on leaders of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), approving the two-and-a-half-year-old decision of the government to ban the Maoists.
The court said the petitioner who appealed against the government’s decision to term the Maoists terrorists could not produce evidence to prove that the Maoists were a political party.
“Since, under Article 112 of the Constitution, the petitioner could not produce evidence to prove the Maoists a political party, there is no need to scrap the government’s decision,” said the bench’s order.
A team of the International Advocacy Mission for Press Freedom in Nepal– that is on a week-long visit to assess the state of the media and journalists– met Maoist leaders in a remote village in the western district of Palpa on Wednesday and discussed the problems journalists faced from the rebels.
According to reports, the team met Maoist central member and deputy commander Prabhakar, deputy spokesperson Ramesh Koirala and Commissar of the fifth division of the Maoists, Sudarshan, at Deugir area of Jhadewa VDC.
The two sides discussed the state of the media and the plight of journalists in the country, reports quoted members of the visiting team as saying.
Representatives of the team, Sadar Asad, Vincent Brossels, Ashis Sen, vice-president of the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) Gangadhar Parajuli, FNJ members Purna Basnet, Durga Karki and journalist Purusottam Dahal attended the meeting.
The mission sought clarification from the Maoists on several issues, including the difficulties including threats and harassment by Maoist against local journalists.
In response, Maoist leaders conceded some mistakes in the past and expressed commitment not to repeat them in future.
“Maoist leaders expressed their commitment to press freedom during the meeting,” Parajuli said. “We will not target journalists. All attacks on them in the past were by mistake,” Parajuli quoted Maoists as saying.
Meanwhile, the Mission also held various meetings on Thursday with ambassadors, civil society members, senior government officials, leaders of political parties and discussed Nepali media situation.
A press statement issued by the FNJ said the International Mission to Nepal had a round table discussion with prominent civil society members of the country and discussed the situation of press freedom and freedom of expression in Nepal.
Participants at the program expressed their deep concern over the situation of freedom of expression in Nepal and appreciated the Mission’s solidarity and support to Nepali media, the statement adds.
Former Speaker Daman Nath Dhungana, former Supreme Court Justice Laxman Prasad Aryal, member of the National Assembly Radheshyam Adhikari, president of Federation of Journalists (FNJ) Bishnu Nisthuri, president of Nepal Teachers Association Keshav Bhattarai, president of Nepal Bar Association Shambhu Thapa, vice president of Nepal Bar Association Sher Bahadur KC and former FNJ president Taranath Dahal expressed their views during the meeting.
Members of the Mission, Jesper Hojborg, Director of IMS, Mogens Schmidt, UNESCO, Marcelo Solervicens of AMARC, Jacqline Park, Asia Coordinator of International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Thomas Hughes, IMS, Shiela Gruner, IFEX, Mark Bench, Director, World Press Freedom Committee were also present during the discussion.
The international mission for press freedom also held separate meetings with the Norwegian Ambassador, Finnish Ambassador and other officials on Thursday.
Similarly the international mission team also held meeting with Ian Martin, representative of United Nations Higher Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), to discuss the human rights and media freedom situation in Nepal.
As continuation of the international advocacy mission that visited Nepal in July last year, 12 international organizations including Article 19, Free Voice, International Federation of Journalists, South Asia Press Commission, International Media Support, Rory Peck Trust, IFEX and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) among others are in Nepal to assess the situation of press freedom and freedom of expression.
Speaker of the dissolved House of Representatives, Taranath Ranabhat, has said that it is wrong to run the country by ordinances and executive orders for a prolonged time.
Speaking at a national consultation on ‘Draft Law to end Untouchability’ organised by Lawyers’ National Campaign Against Untouchability (LANCAU) in the capital on Thursday, Ranabhat said, “It is unfortunate that the nation was being ruled by ordinances and orders.”
Ranabhat also said there is no need to have a new constitution and amendment of the existing constitution can incorporate all the necessary changes people want, the report adds.
He also warned that the attempts to change the constitution may be dangerous as people are not concerned of its consequences. “The nation would face more trouble in the absence of the King,” he added
While praising the effort of LANCAU for taking initiation to draft an ordinance on untouchability, he said, “You have initiated the draft; now you need two experts – one who can understand the essence and the other who can craft it skillfully.”
The president of LANCAU, advocate Narayan Nepal, said the lawyers were compelled to draft the ordinance because the government never took interest in drafting it.
The District Court Kathmandu has remanded recently dismissed sub-inspector of police Hom Bahadur Bagale into 10 days of judicial custody.
According to superintendent of police at the Kathmandu District Police Office (KDPO), Kesh Bahadur Shahi, Bagale was undergoing investigation under the Public Offence Act for using “abusive language” against the police organization, reports said.
Meanwhile, police produced a barber from Handsome Hair Dresser, who informed that he had shaved Bagale’s head for Rs 10 before the latter went to the Police Headquarters.
However, Bagale, who was also presented, challenged the claim saying that he was abused at Police Headquarters and half his head forcibly shaved.
Earlier, Bagale claimed that he was beaten and abused inside the Police Headquarters when he disclosed some wrongdoings of police officials.
Fourteen human rights organizations have condemned KDPO’s refusal of their request to meet Bagale, saying it was a breach of their right to investigate rights abuses.
The Retailers Association of Birgunj has called an indefinite strike in the local town beginning Friday to protest the government raid on shops and business firms.
The town also remained closed on Wednesday and Thursday.
According to reports, the meeting of the businessmen held on Thursday evening decided to call a general strike after revenue chief Narayan Prasad Bhattarai refused to sit for talks at the office of District Chamber of Commerce to settle the issue. The businessmen had formed a 21-member team to hold talks with government, but Bhattarai asked that negotiation team should not be more than eight members.
When the meeting could not be held by Thursday, the businessmen decided to go for a general strike. They said that they would be forced to stop movement along the border with India if government refuses to sit for talks on Friday as well.
The businessmen allege that they have been troubled by government officials several times in the pretext of tax evasion. Reports quoted Bhattarai as saying that all business houses and shops which have received a PAN number, registered at the VAT office and conducting transaction of more than Rs one million monthly should issue VAT bills while selling goods.
Government has intensified raids in business shops since a month to put pressure on the retailers to issue VAT bills while selling goods. Businessmen in New Road, Kathmandu also demonstrated last month after similar raid by the government for evading taxes.
The Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has informed the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), that it would settle the double taxation issue by the end of March.
According to reports, IOC needs to refund Rs 1.12 billion to NOC as per the agreement on avoidance of double taxation between two parties that was signed three years ago.
As per the agreement, the IOC has to refund the tax imposed on import of crude oil at Indian customs.
Report quoted sources at the NOC as saying that the IOC would adjust the sum with the past dues that NOC owes to the IOC. However the NOC would still have about Rs 3 billion to pay to the IOC as past dues even after adjusting the sum.
The NOC has started consultation with the Ministry for Industry, Commerce and Supply and Finance Ministry for the fund after it failed to get positive response from the leading commercial banks in the country in response to call for a short-term loan of Rs two billion.
The IOC has asked the NOC to clear all outstanding dues within March, citing that it needs to settle/close accounts before the end of the Indian fiscal year, which ends in March.
His Majesty King Gyanendra has appointed different individuals to the post of Judge of the Appellate Courts in various districts and also installed them to their posts on the recommendation of the Judicial Council.
According to a notice issued by the Press Secretariat of His Majesty the King on Thursday, District Court Judge at the Chitwan District Court, Bhola Prasad Kharel has been appointed judge at the Appellate Court, Janakpur; District Court Judge at the Kathmandu District Court Om Prakash Mishra has been appointed the Judge at the Appellate Court, Biratnagar; District Court Judge at the Parsa District Court Jagdish Sharma Poudel has been appointed the Judge at the Appellate Court, Patan; and District Court Judge at the Dhanusha District Court Ek Raj Acharya has been appointed Judge at the Appellate Court, Ilam, the state-run news agency, Rastriya Samachar Samiti reported.
Similarly, Judge at the Kavrepalanchowk District Court, Devendra Gopal Shrestha has been appointed Judge at the Appellate Court, Surkhet; District Court Judge at the Sarlahi District Court, Shanti Raj Subedi the Judge at the Appellate Court, Rajbiraj; Additional District Judge at the Dhanusha District Court, Balram Bista, Judge at the Appellate Court, Surkhet; Additional District Court Judge at the Kavrepalanchok District Court, Devendra Raj Sharma, Judge at the Appellate Court, Pokhara; District Court Judge at the Saptari District Court, Madhav Prasad Chalise, Judge at the Appellate Court, Patan; District Court Judge at the Lalitpur District Court, Janardan Bahadur Khadka, Judge at the Appellate Court, Patan; District Court Judge at the Sunsari District Court, Phanindra Datta Sharma, Judge at the Appellate Court, Dhankuta; District Court Judge at the Siraha District Court, Deepak Kumar Karki, Judge a the Appellate Court, Biratnagar; and Additional District Court Judge at the Kathmandu District Court, Dr. Hari Bansha Tripathi, Judge at the Appellate Court, Janakpur.
Likewise, Additional District Court Judge at the Nawalparasi District Court, Tej Bahadur KC has been appointed the Judge at the Appellate Court, Jumla; District Court Judge at the Morang District Court, Thakur Prasad Sharma, Judge at the Appellate Court, Pokhara; Additional District Court Judge at the Kathmandu District Court, Kedar Prasad Chalise, Judge at the Appellate Court, Biratnagar; Additional District Court Judge at the Sunsari District Court, Purushottam Bhandari, Judge at the Appellate Court, Ilam; District Court Judge at the Rupandehi District Court, Surendra Bir Singh Basnyat, Judge at the Appellate Court, Biratnagar; District Court Judge at the Terhathum District Court Dinesh Kumar Karki, Judge at the Appellate Court, Janakpur; District Court Judge at the Kaski District Court, Shambhu Bahadur Khadka, Judge at the Appellate Court, Patan; and Additional District Court Judge at the Siraha District Court Giri Raj Poudel, Judge at the Appellate Court, Janakpur.
Similarly, Additional District Court Judge at the Kathmandu District Court, Tej Bahadur K.C. has been appointed and installed to the post of Judge at the Appellate Court, Rajbiraj; District Court Judge at the Kapilbastu District Court, Sarada Prasad Ghimire, Judge at the Appellate Court, Janakpur; District Court Judge at the Dhading District Court, Posh Nath Sharma, Judge at the Appellate Court, Hetauda; Additional District Court Judge at the Bhaktapur District Court Meera Khadka, Judge at the Appellate Court, Hetauda; District Court Judge at the Arghakhanchi District Court, Bam Kumar Shrestha, Judge at the Appellate Court, Butwal; and District Court Judge at the Bara District Court Dambar Kumar Shahi, Judge at the Appellate Court, Mahendranagar.
According to the Press Secretariat of His Majesty the King, Additional District Court Judge at the Kathmandu District Court Bishwambhar Prasad Shrestha has been appointed and installed to the post of Judge at the Appellate Court, Baglung; Additional District Court Judge at the Chitwan District Court, Ishwar Prasad Khatiwada, Judge at the Appellate Court, Baglung; Additional District Court Judge at the Kapilbastu District Court Dr. Ananda Mohan Bhattarai, Judge at the Appellate Court, Jumla; and Registrar at the Appellate Court, Hetauda Nirmal Kumar Dhungana, Judge at the Appellate Court Rajbiraj.
Meanwhile, His Majesty the King also appointed Judge at the Jhapa District Court Tanka Bahadur Moktan as the Additional Judge of the Appellate Court, Hetauda for two year term and also installed him to the post on the recommendation of the judicial council as per the constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990.
The World Tuberculosis (TB) Day is being observed amidst various programmes aimed at raising awareness to minimise the burden of the disease.
According to statistics, about 80,000 people suffer from Tuberculosis and 40,000 new cases are added in Nepal every year. Among them, about 7,000 people die of TB annually.
According to experts, TB is one of the most infectious diseases and it occurs mainly due to lack of awareness and education.
The government has been providing Directly Observed Treatment, Short course (DOTS) services through 3,000 health institutions around the country to check the risk. There are 364 microscope centres in the country.
Minister of State for Health and Population, Mani Lama said that the government has resolutely implemented the Tuberculosis Prevention Programme with the objective of creating a condition in which TB would not remain as the major public health problem in Nepal and in preventing the unnatural death caused by TB.
In his message on the occasion of the World TB Day today, Minister of State Lama stated that the DOTS programme, implemented as a nationally prioritised programme, has been successfully expanded to cover all the 75 Districts of the country.
Assistant Minister for Health and Population, Neekshya Shumsher Rana, in his message said that the DOTS, which is considered the most effective strategy for Tuberculosis control throughout the world, has become successful in Nepal ever since it was implemented in the country.
The Maoists released six trucks belonging to the Dugar group that the rebels seized on Wednesday.
The Maoists released the trucks in presence of the representatives of Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC) and officials of Human Rights Conservation Forum.
Talking to Nepalnews, Bhola Mahat, mid-western regional coordinator of INSEC informed that the rebels released all the trucks unconditionally at around 11.00 a.m. this morning.
He informed that the rebels released the trucks along with foodstuff.
He quoted the rebels as saying that they took trucks under control as the Dugar group did not fulfill their demands.
The Maoists had seized the trucks carrying rice and ghee of World Food Programme, from Dhakeri jungle of Banke along the Mahendra Highway on Wednesday.
Earlier Maoists distributed oil of five tankers they had taken into control from Agaiya area of Banke district on February 25 to the local people.