Mahendranagar, July 11:

Media persons in Kanchanpur district are up in arms over the abduction and purported murder of former district vice-chairman of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) Prakash Thakuri.

At a meeting organised here today, the media persons urged the local administration to probe into the abduction and “murder” of Thakuri.

The meeting concluded that the whole incident smacked of conspiracy as a Maoist cadre Pom Lal Sharma, who was arrested by the police after Thakuri’s abduction, had told the police that the Maoist-affiliated YCL had a hand in Thakuri’s death, only to be contradicted by the Maoists’ Kanchanpur district organisation committee that YCL was not involved. Soon after, a never-heard-of group calling itself National Republican Army Nepal claimed that it killed journalist Thakuri.

“Based on the statement of Maoist cadre Sharma in police custody to media persons, a press release issued by late Thakuri’s wife Janaki Thakuri and statements of eyewitnesses, YCL cadres were involved in the murder,” a press statement issued after the FNJ meeting said.

“The Maoists’ hand cannot be ruled out until they clearly refute the charges by providing evidence,” the release said.

The meeting also decided to hand over a memorandum to the local administration to dig the facts about Thakuri’s abduction and murder.