Kathmandu, January 26, 2006

The nationwide general strike called by the seven agitating parties against the municipal elections and the government’s suppression of a joint rally on January 20 passed off peacefully except for sporadic incidents of violence in some parts of the country. Police resorted to firing in Pokhara to disperse demonstrators. Twentyeight- year-old local, Basu Dev Baral, was injured in the firing at Prithvi Chowk. Six demonstrators and four policemen were injured in the clashes between demonstrators and police at Prithvi Chowk, Nayan Bazaar, Mahendrapul, New Road, Chipledhunga and in front of Prithvi Narayan Campus in Pokhara. Over two dozen demonstrators were arrested from different parts of Pokhara. Police also fired tear gas shells on the demonstrators. In Kathmandu, student protesters damaged two taxis and five buses of the Nepal Yatayat in different places of the Valley. Protesters also damaged a vehicle of The Himalayan Times at Suryabinayak of Bhaktapur. Party activists held rallies and corner meetings at different places of the Valley to make the bandh a success. According to CPN-UML, police intervened in the rallies and arrested over 20 activists. In the valley, shops in main markets streets remained totally closed while shops in the inner streets remained opened. Public vehicles remained off the road while some mini vans, two wheelers and taxis were seen plying. Air passengers also faced difficulties due to the bandh. All the educational institutions and factories remained closed. In Tanahun, the demonstrators and cops clashed all day long at Prashasan Chowk.

SC reprieve for former vice-chancellor of MSU

Kathmandu, January 26, 2006

The Supreme Court today said the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) cannot issue mandamus orders. A three-member special bench of Justices Anup Raj Sharma, Badri Kumar Basnet and Kalyan Shrestha issued the order responding to a writ petition filed against the anti-graft body by the former vice-chancellor of the Mahendra Sanskrit University (MSU), Acharya Purna Chandra Dhungel, more than a year ago. The bench also ordered that the CIAA cannot exercise the power to issue directive to any body though Clause 12(a) and (b) of the CIAA Act 2002 gives it the authority to recommend any government body or official to correct the mischief of any official. The bench added that these provisions did not contradict with the Constitution as claimed by the writ petitioner. These provisions authorise the CIAA to recommend any body or official to correct their mischief committed while performing duty. The bench issued clean chit to Dhungel, who was convicted by the anti corruption panel of in corruption case while he was on duty. “The CIAA has no authority to issue such mandamus orders,” the bench observed.