SUPREME COURT SHOW CAUSE NOTICE ON LOCAL ELECTIONS

SUPREME COURT SHOW CAUSE ON LOCAL ELECTIONS
Kathmandu, 4 Mach: The Supreme Court has on Wednesday issued a show cause notice in the name of the government in response to a writ petition filed seeking holding of the local bodies' elections at the earliest.
A single bench of court justice Giris Chandra Lal issued a notice to this effect.
Madhav Poudel of District Development Committee Federation, Bidur Mainali of Municipalities' Association of Nepal and Advocate Dr Chandrakanta Gyawali, on behalf of Village Development Committees' Federation, had registered a joint petition at the apex court, calling for immediate local bodies' elections.
The petition has named the Office of Prime Minister and Council of Ministers and Ministry of Local Development as the defendants, stating that irregularities and corruption has increased in the local bodies due to absence of elected peoples representatives at the local level for a long time.
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MAOIST LEADER DEAD
Kathmandu, 4 March: The funeral of UCPN-Maoist Kochila State Committee Advisor Santa Kumar Bantawa Rai was performed today [Sunday], RSS reports from Damak..
He was cremated at the Sitapuri Jungle at Lakhanpur as per Kirant Rai culture.
At the programme organised by the Kirant Rai Yayokkha, Maoist CA Member Dharma Shila Chapagain, UCPN-Maoist Central Member Pralhad Budhathoki, Yayokkha Central Vice Chairman Tilak Rai, and representatives of various political parties and organisation representatives were present.
Rai was also chairman of the under-construction Indigenous Nationalities Stadium Construction Committee at Lakhanpur-1 and Yayokkha Jhapa's founding district chairman.
He was Mechi Zonal president during the Panchayat regime.
Rai, 77, was suffering from blood pressure and diabetes and died at his own residence at Mangalbare, Lakhanpur -2, Saturday.
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