Claiming that his party does not have a policy to attack press freedom, Minister for Information and Communication and a senior Maoist leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara has washed off his party’s hands from the current disruption in the distribution of two daily newspapers.

Owing to the intervention by Maoist-affiliated delivery boys, the distribution of The Himalayan Times and Annapurna Post has been disrupted.

“Party had not intervened nor will it in the dispute between workers and management in Nepal Samacharpatra in recent past and in Annapurna Post currently. There is no meaning in dragging the Maoist name every time there is a dispute between workers and management,” Mahara told reporters.

Meanwhile, the US embassy spokesperson Sharon Hudson-Dean deplored the interference in the press freedom. “Intimidation of free media is intimidation against democracy. In this case, Maoist union-affiliated activities directly undermine claims by their leaders to support democracy and free media,” she said.