PM CALLS FOR GOVT.LED BY FRINGE PARTY Kathmandu, 14 Jan.:- Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai on Sunday said a consensus government led by a fringe party or an independent person should be formed as the present situation is "not right to accept" a government led by any one of the three big political parties. He said his party, the UCPN (Maoist), is ready to be 'more flexible' for the same, Pren Kumari Ghale writes in The Kathmandu Post from Lamjung.. Speaking at a programme here, the PM said an agreement could not be reached due to conflict between those for change and those against it. He said he was accused of protecting criminals when he proposed moving ahead with war-time cases after forming the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). The PM is under fire from several quarters for allegedly trying to stop investigations into the murder of Dailekh-based journalist Dekendra Thapa. He accused the Nepali Congress of delaying the formation of the TRC. The transitional justice mechanism was supposed to be formed within six months of the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2006. He said that out of the 15,000 people killed during the Maoist insurgency, 12,000 died when the CPN-UML and the NC were in power and that both the parties are responsible for the disappearance of 13,000 people during the conflict. He added that he can name those responsible for the disappearances, but that he cannot do so "as the peace process may be derailed." nnnn AUSTRALIAN INJURED IN BUS ACCIDENT Kathmandu, 14 Jan.: - A foreign tourist died and five others seriously injured when a micro-van collided with a passenger bus at Khatripauwa in Dhading district on Sunday, The Kathmandu Post reports from Dhading... The deceased has been identified as Nida, 24, from Australia. The driver of the van and four other tourists were among those injured. The ill-fated micro van (Ga 1 Pa 70) heading towards Kathmandu from Pokhara collided head-on with a passenger bus heading for Katadvitta from Kathmandu. Three of the injured have been undergoing treatment at Patan hospital and the other two have been admitted at Sahid Memorial Hospital in Kalanki. NNNN