KATHMANDU, JANUARY 12

Minister of Communications and Information Technology and Parbat Gurung said announcing elections to seek a fresh mandate could not be an unconstitutional step.

Addressing the first annual general meeting of Working Dalit Journalists’ Association Nepal here today, he said it was totally wrong to say that seeking a fresh mandate was a violation of freedom and a coup.

Minister Gurung said in the present situation there was no alternative other than to go for polls. “The elections will give a political way out to the current situation, hence we should all start preparing for it, he added.

Gurung said the journalists should be guiding society rather than creating anarchy in the name of press freedom.

He also stressed the need to end untouchability that remained a blot on society, and it could be done through the collaborative effort of all.

Central Secretary of Federation of Nepali Journalists Ram Prasad Dahal stressed the need to address the issues of the Dalit community through a policy decision.

He also called for enforcement of the working journalists act, and putting an end to the situation where journalists are forced to carry banners instead of reporting news.

At the function, senior journalists Kosmos Biswakarma, Govinda Pariyar, Baburam Biswakarma and Prakash Chandra Pariyar were felicitated.