Kathmandu, May 4:

VDC secretaries today condemned the killing of Allaudhin Ansari, VDC secretary of Dishapatti, Mahottari, who was killed by an unidentified armed group today.

Issuing a statement, VDC Secretary Rights Protection Centre appealed to all the VDCs to remain closed on May 5 in protest against the murder of Ansari.

Blaming the government for not paying due attention to the safety and security of the VDC secretaries, the Centre warned that the working environment at VDCs might be unfavourable provided that this trend continues.

The statement urged the government to provide security for VDC secretaries to get daily works done smoothly and to ensure safe working environment for secretaries. It also points out that VDC secretary of Jayanagar in Rautahat, Bishwanath Prasad Sah, who was abducted by JTMM-J on April 30, was yet to be released.