ONCE-OVER

Freedom fighter dies

ITAHARI: Freedom fighter and senior leftist leader Dukhilal Chaudhary died at his residence in Sunsari’s Pakali-9 at 5 am on Monday. He was 89. He entered into politics in 1945 from ‘Kisan Andolan’. He was a member of the central advisory committee of CPN-UML. — HNS

Flights disrupted

JANAKPURDHAM: Regular flights here have remained disrupted since Sunday due to thick fog followed by a cold wave, Janakpur airport office said on Monday. Poor visibility is hampering the take-off and landing, the office said. Although the Buddha Air made a flight from the capital on Sunday, it could not land here. — HNS

Arms containers

SURKHET: Two containers meant for locking up weapons of the Maoists’ People’s Liberation Army arrived at the Maoists’ sixth division camp in Dashrathpur of Surkhet on Monday. The main cantonment site lies at a distance of some 33 kms from district headquarters, Birendranagar. CDO of Surkhet Anil Kumar Pandey handed over the containers to division commander Tej Prakash Oli ‘Prateek’. — HNS

AG Adhikari retires

Kathmandu: Auditor General Gehendra Nath Adhikari retired from his post as he turned 65 on Monday. The constitutional provision states that the Auditor General retires from his post at the age of 65. Auditor General Adhikari was appointed to the post more than two years ago. — RSS

INSEC office robbed

Nepalgunj: An armed gang looted the INSEC’s Central Western Regional Office at National Trading road in Nepalgunj-13 on Sunday night. The looters took office assistant Buddhi Bahadur Chaudhary under their control and looted Rs 95,000 in cash at gunpoint, said INSEC acting regional coordinator Bhajan Chaudhary. The gang broke into the office and threatened Chaudhary. In a press release on Monday, INSEC condemned the incident. — HNS

JTMM’s claim

RAUTAHAT: The Janatantrik Terai Mukti Morcha (JTMM) on Monday took responsibility for the abduction of Govinda Upreti (60), a resident of Sundarpur Choharwa VDC-9 in Sarlahi. JTMM’s political commissar Arjun Yadav told journalists that his party activists abducted Upreti on Sunday. He was abducted by an armed gang of 10 persons from his house. “Upreti has been taken under control for interrogation and will be released within five days,” Arjun said. Upreti is the father of Nepali film star Nikhil Upreti. — HNS

Locals thrash Maoists

SIRAHA: Villagers of Kundalpur, Harkatti VDC, beat up Maoist cadres who were trying to abduct a local on Sunday. Ten Maoists had gone to Kundalpur on five motorcycles to abduct Hari Govinda Yadav, chairman of the All Nepal Janabadi Youth Association. The locals seized two Maoist cadres — Prem Yadav and Suresh Kumar Singh — and handed them over to the police on Monday, Lahan police confirmed. — HNS

Abduction flayed

Kathmandu: Nepal Bar Association Human Rights Committee on Monday condemned the abduction of Govinda Uprety by Tarai Janatantrik Mukti Morcha and the murder of Shrikrishna Neupane. Chairman of the committee, Bishwokanta Mainali, urged the Morcha to release Uprety immediately . — HNS