News of the ruling party’s own lawmakers criticising the party leadership in the parliamentary party meeting has been featured in all national newspapers. The Supreme Court on Monday gave the go-ahead to government authorities for recruiting over 9,000 personnel for the local governments has also been featured in a few newspapers along with news of Special Court acquitting four former APF chiefs of corruption.
Here is a summary of important, ignored and interesting stories published on front pages of Kathmandu broadsheet dailies, both Nepali and English, on Tuesday.
Important
Oli government criticised by own lawmakers
Nagarik, The Himalayan Times and Republica report that lawmakers of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) on Monday criticised their own government’s poor performance.
During the NCP parliamentary party meeting, lawmakers said the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli led government had failed to meet people’s expectations even after being in power for more than one year.
Lawmakers informed Oli, who is also their parliamentary party leader that the government’s performance belied the claims the PM made in his public speeches. Around 30 NCP lawmakers expressed their views in the PP meeting. Of them, almost 80 per cent lawmakers criticised the Oli-led government’s performance, according to a party lawmaker.
Some MPs criticised the government for allocating budget only in the districts and constituencies represented by ministers and powerful leaders. Replying to lawmakers, Oli, who is also the party co-chair, refuted the charge that he took all decisions on his own. Senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal didn’t say a word in the meeting.
On the other hand, Annapurna Post reports that PM Oli in the meeting confirmed that he signed on the documents dealing with party merger without assessing it. He adds that he did to make sure that the communist party was strong and signed the document brought to him by party co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal.
SC clears way for recruiting civil servants for local government
Kantipur, Annapurna Post, and Republica report that the Supreme Court on Monday gave the go-ahead to government authorities– Public Service Commission and Ministry of General Administration— for recruiting over 9,000 personnel for the local governments.
The court said it gave its nod for the vacancies upholding the rights of all those eligible for government jobs to apply. A division bench of Justices Hari Krishna Karki and Ananda Mohan Bhattarai issued the order in response to five different writ petitions challenging the staff recruitment. After two days of hearings that started Sunday, the court refused a stay order to halt the recruitment.
Ignored
33 kg gold case: Judge Singh fired
Annapurna Post reports that judge Umesh Kumar Singh from Biratnagar has been fired for his role in the 33 kg gold smuggling case. The decision was taken by the judicial council on Monday evening. Singh’s fellow judges Sadhuram Sapkota and Thir Bahadur Karki are also under investigation.
Baluwatar land grab case: Bhatbhatini Supermarket owner Gurung under investigation
Nagarik reports that the Department of Money Laundering Investigation has initiated an investigation on Min Bahadur Gurung, chairman of Bhatbhateni Supermarket and other two land-mafias Shobhakanta Dhakal and Ram Kumar Subedi on the charge of amassing a huge amount of money through illegal means.
CIAA and CIB have already probed Gurung, Dhakal, and Subedi for their involvement in the scam of 114 ropanis of land belonging to Lalita Niwas. The Department is also planning to investigate the investment into the branches of Bhatbhateni Supermarkets opened in various parts of the country.
Nepali bank accounts increase in Swiss banks
Karobar reports that Nepal stands at 109th position on the list of foreign nations whose citizens have parked money in the Swiss banking system. Last year Nepal was ranked 112. As for Nepal’s neighbour India is positioned at the 74th rank in terms of money parked by Indian individuals and enterprises.
Interesting
TIA open for 21 hours
Karobar reports that along with the completion of the runway rehabilitation works at Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA), the airport has resumed service for 21 hours daily from Monday.
The country’s sole international airport remained shut for 10 hours per day since the first week of April, as its management embarked on the biggest maintenance work of runway since its construction in 1975.
Number of registered and unregistered enterprises the same in Nepal
Arthik Abhiyan reports that nearly 50 per cent enterprises in Nepal have been in operation without being registered. Of the total number of enterprises in the country, only 42 per cent of them keep an up to date financial record while the rest failed to show their financial record.
Govt to host international media summit
The Kathmandu Post reports that Gokul Baskota, Minister for Communications and Information Technology, announced on Monday that plans were underway to hold an international media summit in order to promote tourism to Nepal.
Though plans have yet to be formally announced, it is expected that the summit will be held after IIFA awards, possibly sometime in October or November.
The summit will take place over two weeks and will cost the state around Rs 200-300 million, said Baskota. International media will be encouraged to write about Nepal’s tourism prospects, with photographs and live streams from various locations.
Baskota’s ambitious plans come at a time when the government is already facing criticism from across the socio-political spectrum for its plans to host the IIFA 2019, the annual Bollywood film awards, by paying the organisers over Rs 450 million.
