Kathmandu, February 7:

The Nepal Free Hotel Labour Union, a sister organisation of the Maoists, today warned advocate Jyoti Baniya to withdraw a public interest litigation (PIL) from the Supreme Court within two hours or be ready to be ‘exterminated’.

“Union’s chairman Ramesh Pant called me at 10:45 am from his mobile and warned me that I would be exterminated if I did not withdraw the case immediately,” Baniya told journalists.

Baniya filed a complaint at the Nepal Bar Association (NBA) immediately after the issuance of threat by Pant, who is also a defendant in the PIL in which Chief Justice Dilip Kumar Paudel had issued show cause notices to the union and the government authorities on Monday.

Baniya and some other lawyers had jointly filed the case against an agreement between hotel management and the union to levy 10 per cent additional tax from customers. As per the accord, 68 per cent share of the additional tax will be given to the union and the rest will go to hotels and restaurants.

Former NBA president Shambhu Thapa and newly elected president Bishwokanta Mainali contacted Maoist leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara to discuss the issue. “He (Mahara) told me that he will look into the case,” Thapa said.

The advocates, including Baniya, had filed the PIL seeking the apex court’s intervention, claiming that 10 per cent additional tax from customers was not justifiable. In a press release, NBA general-secretary Madhav Banskota asked the Maoists’ union to stop issuing threats against lawyers.

On Monday, the Chief Justice’s bench had issued show cause notices to Prime Minister’s Office and the Cabinet, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labour and Transport Management and the union to attend the apex court on Sunday to participate in the hearing.

Union chairman Pant today confirmed that he had issued threats to the lawyer to withdraw the PIL but denied that he had threatened to “exterminate” him. “I requested him on behalf of the labours to withdraw the case,” Panta claimed. He added that they would not defend the case in the court but would launch a protest in the streets.