Editor threatened to be bombed
KATHMANDU/July 25: A faction of the Communist Party of Nepal led by Netra Bikram Chand, also known as Biplav, has threatened Kishor Shrestha, the editor-in-chief of the vernacular weekly Janastha, over the publication of a news article. Shrestha, the former Chairperson of the Press Council Nepal, has been in the journalism profession for over three and a half decades.
In conversation with Media Action Nepal, Shrestha shared that he was threatened inside his newsroom and office of Aastha Prakashan Pvt. at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, July 23.
Kapil C, a person who identified himself as Secretariat Secretary of the Party, repeatedly threatened through his mobile number +977 9844838892 and warned to bomb the Editor-in-Chief Shrestha by using extremely abusive words. “Then in the afternoon, three people entered Shrestha’s office in Dhobighat of Lalitpur district with pistols and threatened all of the employees, saying that if they did not come to the Buddhanagar office of the party within an hour, they would bomb and blow up the office,” Shrestha told Media Action Nepal. “They disrupted the publication of the newspaper for several hours.”
Media Action Nepal urges the political party to respect media independence and to address any grievances through appropriate regulatory bodies rather than resorting to threats and violence.
Meanwhile, it has been learned that Kapil C was arrested on the same day and is currently in the custody of the Kathmandu Police Complex. “They had called me again, seeking support for his release, and threatened again,” Shrestha added.
The President of Biplav Group’s student organization, Narendra C, has threatened again today regarding the same issue. Furthermore, they blamed Shrestha for spreading misleading propaganda by making false accusations. “We challenge and demand that they prove their baseless accusations,” Shrestha said.
Meantime, Laxman Datt Pant, Chairperson of Media Action Nepal, has condemned the anarchic act of a political faction stating that it is a clear violation of constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights and a direct attack on press freedom. “We urge the political party to respect media independence and to address any grievances through appropriate regulatory bodies rather than resorting to threats and violence,” Pant added.
Featured pic : Editor Shrestha