The Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) has said its grave attention has been drawn by the incident of threatening of journalists including FNJ Ilam branch member and reporter with the Kantipur national daily, Biplav Bhattarai, over a news report.

Director of the B&C Hospital at Birtamod of Jhapa district, Durga Prasain, threatened the journalists over the phone using abusive words against them, the FNJ stated in a press release issued by its general secretary Ramesh Bista.  

According to the FNJ Ilam branch, Prasain abused Bhattarai and other journalists when they tried to confirm with him on the phone that one Chaitanya Mainali was going to Ilam to meet with Dr Govinda KC.

Senior orthopaedic surgeon at Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Dr KC, is on a fast-onto-death in Ilam, protesting some provisions in the National Medical Education Bill.  

The FNJ concluded that the incident of threatening through the use of abusive language the journalists independently performing their responsibility is a deed against the press freedom. It has strongly denounced the ‘anti-press freedom’ act and demanded all sides concerned to respect the constitutional rights of journalists and to not repeat such incidents.