DR. JAY NARAYAN SHAJ APPOINTED VC OF PATAN ACAAADEMY OF HEALTH SCIENSE Kathamandu, 12 Feb. Prime Minister’s Office Tuesday appointed Professor of Surgery Dr Jay Narayan Shah as new Vice-chancellor of Patan Academy of Health Science (PAHS). He is the third VC of PAHS. The appointment was made on the basis of the recommendation forwarded by the committee formed to suggest the name of the new Vice Chancellor. The committee recommended three names. nnnn RED SANDLEWOOD BEING SMUGGLED TO CHINA INTERCE[TED Kathmandu, 12 Feb.: Armed Police Force (APF) Tuesday seized red sandalwood being smuggled to Khasa along Arniko Highway. Altogether 425 kg rare wood was being smuggled in m a vehicle Several persons have arrested including the driver and his aide. Nnnn NC, UML FIRST WANT CJ’S RESIGNATION Kathmandu, 12 Feb.:: A meeting of top leaders of the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML held this afternoon decided to take all necessary steps to ensure Constituent Assembly polls by May-end but concluded that they would not accept appointment of the incumbent chief justice as the chief administrator to hold the elections unless he resigned from his post. NC and UML are insisting that Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi’s appointment as the chief executive without resigning from his current post contradicts the principle of separation of power, The Himalayan Times reports., . Sources said the ruling Unified CPN-Maoist, however, wanted to appoint the head of judiciary as the head of the government by letting the chief justice keep his current post intact. NC and UML said they wanted a deal in a package, which should also include the reason why the ruling Maoist did not agree on NC President Sushil Koirala as the next prime minister and why they wanted to pick or picked an independent or a non-political person for the top job. “We are open to discuss any alternative candidate — it could be the incumbent chief justice or any other independent person. But we want a deal in a package explaining why Sushil Koirala’s name was unacceptable (to the ruling Maoists) and why we need a particular independent person to lead a government into election,” said NC Spokesperson Dilendra Prasad Badu after the two-party meeting held at Koirala’s residence in Maharajgunj. “‘Can an independent candidate hold the elections in the given situation?’ is one of the concerns of NC and UML,” said Badu. “The other is: What should be the rights and duties of such a person?” “The meeting also decided to seek all that was necessary to ensure free and fair elections,” added Badu. He said NC had called its Central Working Committee meeting tomorrow morning to finalise the issue of election government. Nnnn NEW PM CONDITION TO QUIT Kathmandu, 12 Feb.: Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai on Monday briefed his Cabinet colleagues about the ongoing talks to form an election government led by the incumbent Chief Justice, The Himalayan Times reports.. In the Cabinet meeting held at his official residence in Baluwutar this evening, Dr. Bhattarai said he would stay put in the office, if the opposition parties did not accept Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi's leadership to hold the elections. He maintained that he would bear the pressure from the opposition parties and would not step down at any cost. The Maoist party has proposed to form the election goverment, with Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi leading it. However, it is not clear yet whether he will be the new prime minister or the chief of a council equivalent to the Cabinet. Cabinet decisions Meanwhile, the Cabinet decided to handover seven projects of national significance to the Investment Board Nepal. grant Rs 6 million to the Marxist Gurukul, which is operated by UCPN-Maoist central committee member Sonam Sathi, and Rs 3 million to the Inter-party Women’s Network. Likewise, it decided to constitute Police Investigation Academy in the chairmanship of Prof. Shreeram Paudel. Prof. Mahendra Singh and security expert Shree Purush Dhakal are members of the think tank. The Cabinet further decided to rename the Narayanghat-Muglin road-section after late Ram Raja Prasad Singh to pay tribute to the republican leader. Also, the meeting gave green flag to Chief Secretary Leela Mani Paudel to invite his Indian counterpart, Pulak Chaterjee, for an official visit to Nepal. nnnn