One killed in mishap

NAWALPARASI: One Amar Rai, 32, a resident of Dhurkot-8 in Nawalparasi district, was killed when he was hit by a vehicle at Bardaghat on the Mahendra highway on Monday morning, police said. The registration number of the vehicle could not be ascertained. —HNS

NC-D ready for demo

KATHMANDU: The Nepali Congress (Democratic) is bracing up for a show of strength on Friday, the party’s Acting President Gopal Man Shrestha said on Monday at the party office amid a function arranged to distribute certificate to the newly elected Central Working Committee (CWC) members of the party. “We must ensure that we turn out huge number of people on Friday. We have promised the alliance that we can do it,” Shrestha said telling the party presidents of over a dozen districts in the periphery of the capital. Other leaders who addressed party workers were General Secretary Bimalendra Nidhi, coordinator of the movement Gyanendra Karki, Chiranjivi Wagle and others. — HNS

Gorkha Festival ends

GORKHA: The Gorkha Festival, organised on the occasion of the 284th anniversary of the late Prithvi Narayan Shah, the National Unity Day and the Manaslu Mountaineering Golden Jubilee-2006, formally ended here on Sunday. The festival was jointly organised by the Gorkha Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the DDC and the Prithvi Narayan municipality. The organising committee honoured Annapurna Radio 93.4, Nepal Tourism Board and the Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industries by awarding them special letters of appreciation for their outstanding contribution in publicising and promoting the festival. On the closing ceremony, the winners and best performers of various competitions held during the festival were given cash prizes and certificates. — RSS

Follow poll code: EC

MAHOTTARI: The Office of the District Election Officer in Mahottari has said the code of conduct for elections scheduled to be held on February 8 should be followed strictly.

Talking to RSS, District Election Officer Jaya Mukunda Khanal said all parties are required to strictly follow the election code of conduct right from the campaigns to the day polls are held. Noting that the office is committed to carrying out its services in an impartial manner, he said there should not be interference in the people’s right to vote from any side. He also said many interaction programmes on the code of conduct have been held with the political parties and intellectuals of various sectors while monitoring is being carried out in this regard by representatives of security authorities. — RSS

Durga Shrestha’s plea

DAMAULI: Former Minister and central member of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Durga Shrestha, has appealed to all political parties to refrain from indulging in subversive activities in the name of boycotting the upcoming municipal polls. Talking to RSS, Shrestha said the political parties are indulging in subversive activities in their campaign against monarchy, which she said, would hurt the dignity of the institution of monarchy, and urged all people

to protest such activities. She said the existence of Nepal cannot even be imagined without the institution of monarchy. The RPP would put all its efforts into ensuring that the elections are held in a free and fair manner. — RSS

Royals in Damak

BIRATNAGAR: King Gyanendra and Queen Koma on Monday arrived in Damak of Jhapa district in course of their informal visit to the eastern development region. The royal couple arrived at the Himalayan Goodrik, the Damak-based palace at 11:30. The King received the information about the security situation of the district. He gave an audience to the chiefs of district-based security forces. Many people had gathered to welcome the royal couple at Damak chowk. The royal couple returned to Itahari at 5 pm. — HNS

Man escapes captivity

RAMECHHAP: Seventy-year-old Chandra Bahadur Shrestha, a resident of Phulasi VDC-5, Ramechhap, has managed to escape from the Maoists’ captivity on Sunday night. He was abducted by Maoist cadres on Thursday. “I ran away from Maoist custody on the fourth day of my abduction and detention at Pingkhuri village development committee of the district on Sunday midnight,” he said on Monday after reaching the district headquarters. “The Maoists have threatened to kill me if my two sons — Ratna Bahadur and Yagya Bahadur did not quit their jobs in the Armed Police Force,” he said. “A group of five armed Maoist cadres also beat me up after the abduction,” Shrestha said. — HNS

Call to boycott polls

Bara: Nepali Congress (NC) central member and former Home Minister, Khum Bahadur Khadka, today urged civilians to actively boycott the upcoming municipal polls. Addressing a party workers’ gathering at Kalaiya in Bara, he urged party activists of the district to take part in poll boycott campaigns that will commence from January 20 in Kathmandu. Accusing the King of imposing autocratic rule, he said: “There is no alternative to movements to root out autocracy and establish people’s supremacy.” NC central member Phar Mullah Mansur said: “The movement is inevitable to establish sovereignty of the people and restore democracy in the country.” The programme was chaired by Lal Bahadur Singh, Bara district president of the NC. —HNS

Team to fight dacoits

SARLAHI: Villagers who have teamed to retaliate against the dacoits have imposed ban on movement of people in and around their village in Dhungrekhola to prevent the entry of dacoits there. Fearing that the dacoits could take benefit from the jungle and shrubs in Dhungrekhola and Hariwan VDC for looting, the committee announced the ban effective from 6.00 pm in the evening to 4.00 am the next morning. Though the curfew does not have any legal validity the villagers here abide by the rule to protect themselves from the dacoits, Prakash Prasadi a member of the team said. — HNS