Dhamala ‘victimised’

KATHMANDU: Acting president of Nepali Congress Sushil Koirala on Wednesday said the arrest of journalist Rishi Dhamala was a government bid to threaten and suppress the press. Addressing a function organised by FNJ, Koirala said that everyone should raise voice against Dhamala’s arrest. NC spokesperson Arjun Narsingh KC said Dhamala’s arrest was pre-planned and a conspiracy to suppress the press. FNJ president Dharmendra Jha said the government was treating the media badly. Meanwhile, doctors at TU Teaching Hospital said Dhamala, who is in Dilli Bazaar prison, was suffering from health problems including lung infection. — HNS

NC backs teachers

KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress (NC) and Professional Alliance for Peace and Democracy (PAPAD) on Wednesday expressed solidarity with the demands of Public Campus Teachers’ Association of Nepal. Public campus officials are on relay hunger strike for six days, demanding a separate Nepal Public University. Bhola Nath Regmi, senior vice president of the association said, Nepali Congress leaders Sushil Koirala and Ram Chandra Poudel expressed solidarity with the strike. They also promised to raise the issue in the parliament, Regmi said. Professional Alliance for Peace and Democracy members also visited the agitators at Ratnapark to express solidarity with the strike. — HNS