Police arrest 37 professionals, include NBA president

Kathmandu April 5-Police have taken into custody 37 professionals including journalists, lawyers and professors on Wednesday morning as they were taking out a peaceful rally in defiance of prohibitory orders from New Baneshwore of Kathmandu.

NBA president Shambhu Thapa, vice-president Sher Bahadur KC and general secretary Madhav Banskota; FNJ president Bishnu Nisthuri, general secretary Mahendra Bista and secretary Balram Baniya were among the arrested.

According toNBA, 13 journalists, 13 lawyers, 5 professors, 3 doctors, 2 film artists and a civil movement activist were arrested from the peaceful protest rally organized by Professional Alliance for Peace and Democracy (PAPAD).

Mainwhile The Nepal Bar Association, the umbrella organisation of lawyers across the nation, today decided to boycott the court businesses, including the Supreme Court, in the Kathmandu valley to protest the police intervention and arrest of many lawyers from a pro-democracy rally on Wednesday morning.

This is the first time that the lawyers have announced to boycott the court business after the restoration of democracy in Nepal in 1990.“We have decided to boycott today’s court business to protest the police interference in the peaceful demonstration,” NBA central member Tikaram Bhattarai said.

According Bhattarai, they boycotted the Supreme Court, the Kathmandu District Court, the Lalitpur District Court, the Bhaktapur Distirict Court and the Patan Appellate Court.

NBA is a constituent of the alliance of six professional organisations that called today’s demonstration. Police arrested at least 36 professionals from the rally that could not materialise after police intervention.

The NBA has given a deadline of 2 o’clock to release the arrested professional or it would announce strong protest programmes. “We will decide what further action should be taken later,” said Bhattarai.