BIRENDRA KESHARI POKHREL DEAD

BIRENDRA KESHARI POKHEREL DEAD

Kathmandu, 5 Sept.: Birendra Keshari Pokhrel died Sunday.
He was 85.
Pokhrel left behind two wives and four sons.
He was engineer, a former member of Rashtriya Panchayat, a human rights activist and advocate of liberal democracy.
Pokhrel was a founding member of Nepal Human Rights Organization and worked closely with Rishikesh Shah and former chairman of Amnesty International Nepal.
The relentless crusader for democracy was chief of the Roads Department and was involved in the conceptualization of the Mahendra Highway.
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TWO NC SUGGESTION COMMITTEES MEET

Kathmandu, 5 Sept.: The peace and constitution committees of main opposition NC headed respectively by senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba and Vice-president Ram Chandra Paudel are reviewing previous suggestions for party adoption Tuesday as a central committee meet continues.
The constitution committee is also discussing a federal structure after rejection of other parties’ demand for a task force of experts to suggest a federal structure.
NC has suggested formation of state restructuring commission.
The party has already suggested seven provinces in a federal state.
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DRI UNCOVERS NEW CASES OF IC MISUSE

Kathmandum, Sept 5: The Department of Revenue Investigation (DRI) on Sunday has found two firms of misappropriating an additional Rs 207 million worth of Indian currency (IC) by producing fake customs declaration forms and demand drafts without actually importing the goods, Prabhakar Ghimere writes in Republica.
“Digital World and Maxwell Computer have been suspected of misappropriating an additional Rs 130 million and Rs 77.6 million from NIC Bank between February 24 to September 2 and May 15 to September 2 respectively, producing fake documents,” Shanta Bahadur Shrestha, director general of DRI told Republica.

He said traders were using clandestine ways to siphon off the hard earned IC amid the tight policy of Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB).

A joint investigation carried out by DRI and Parsa District Police on Wednesday had found Maxwell Computer, Shyam Galla Bhandar, Jaya Matadi International, Digital World and GS Traders of producing nine fake customs declaration forms to siphon off IC worth Rs 460 million from the Birgunj branch of NIC Bank over the last six months.

With the unfolding of these cases, the total misappropriation of IC by these firms now stands at over Rs 660 million.

Police has already sent Kul Bhusan Mishra, Suresh Mishra, Sandeep Sah, Arabinda Kumar Sah and Ramesh Kumar Sah, suspected of involvement in the misappropriation of IC, to judicial custody after arresting them in possession of IRs 7.5 million. Preliminary investigation shows that the firms they represent have not imported goods as claimed in the customs declaration forms.

“What´s more, we couldn´t even find the physical existence of the firms during our four-day investigation,” said Shrestha.
• Suspected misappropriation of IC worth over Rs 660m
• Five firms involved
• No physical existence of firms´ offices
• Experts from NRB, DoC to assist investigation
DRI has formed a seven-member investigation team led by Mohan Lal Chand on Sunday. The team also includes experts from NRB and DoC.

“We couldn´t find any physical proof of the import of the goods. The bank statement, customs declaration forms and demand drafts submitted by the traders do not match,” Shrestha added. He said action would be taken against them as per the Foreign Exchange (Regulation) Act.

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NHRC RAPS MAOIST UDMF DEAL

Kathmandu, 5 Sept : National Human Rights Commission Chairman Kedar Nath Upadhyaya on Sunday urged Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai not to give clemency to human rights violators, Republica reports.

Upadhyaya wrote a three-page-long letter to Dr Bhattarai calling for scrapping of the recently signed four-point deal between the UCPN (Maoist) and the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) that says criminal cases associated with the conflict would be withdrawn.

Chairman Upadhyaya said such withdrawal would go against the principles of human rights.

The letter says decision on such cases would be made by a truth commission and the government has no authority to take decision on such cases.

Dr Baburam Bhatarai led-government last Sunday reached a four-point deal with UDMF to scrap all the human rights violation cases that were registered during 10-year armed conflict, Madhesh movement and Tharuhat movement.

Earlier, international human rights groups including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and International Commission of Jurists had strongly protested the four-point agreement
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PM BHATTARAI EXPANDS GOVT. SEVEN AYS AFTER INSTALLATION

Kathmandu, 5 Sept.: Prime Minister, Dr Baburam Bhattarai expanded his two-member cabinet Sunday seven days after his installation.
The expanded government has 13 ministers, including another deputy prime minister, from his party and a front of five Madeshbadi parties.
Third Maoist Vice-chairman Narayan Kazi Shrestha from the outgoing government of Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal was re-appointed deputy prime minister with the foreign ministry portfolio.
Shrestha was appointed after the First Vice-chairman faction of Mohan Baidya refused to join the Bhattarai government.
Secretary CP Gajurel was expected to join the government team.
Baidya group opposes the Prachanda/Bhattarai
decision to handover keys of containers with insurgency-era Maoist weapons delivered to UN
The keys were handed over to a government headed ex-officio by the prime minister.
Post Bahadur Bogart, Barshaman Pun and Kamal Roka of UCPN (Maoist) were appointed ministers of energy and youth and sports
Maoists Top Bahadur Rayamajhi and Prabhu Sah are ministers for local development and land reforms
Bhattarai installed the ministers in the presence of President Dr.Ram Baran Yadav.
Eight ministers from the United Democratic Madhesi Front were also appointed.
Following differences in MJFD of Deputy Prime Minister Bijaya Kumar Gachedhar, Sarat Singh Bhandari and Nilam Verma didn’t take their oaths.
They were nominated defense and environment ministers respectively.

Meanwhile, the central committee of Tarai Madhes Democratic Party-Nepal (TMDP-N) has authorized Chairman Mahendra Yadav to pick minister-nominees as the party has failed to pick cosensus candidates.

Similarly, Tarai Madhes Democratic Party (TMDP) is yet to nominate candidate for the ministerial portfolio allocated to the party. The TMDP central committee has authorized Chairman Mahantha Thakur to nominate the ministerial candidate.

TMDP and TMDP-N have been allocated four ministries. However, only two ministers from the parties took oath of office and secrecy on Sunday.
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THREE FAMILY MEMBERS DISCOVERED DEAD IN SARLAHI

Kathmandu, 5 Sept.: Threee members of a family were found dead at Phattarkot VDC in Sarlahi Saturday.
Bodies of Usha Debi Mahoto, 25, and her two infants .
Police suspect they died in a suicide bid.
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NAYA PATRIKA OFFICE VANDALISED

Kathmandu, 5 Sept.: The office of Naya Patrika, a Nepali language broadsheet, was vandalized at Kamal Pokhari Sunday by youth associated with main opposition NC.
Student leaders Raj Kumar Sigdel and Rajan Shrestha were arrested following the incident.
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