The Nepali Congress (NC) on May 22 demanded that the Government stall the Media Council Bill until the anti-press provisions of the bill are removed, reports Republica. Speaking in Parliament, NC Chief Whip Pushpa Bhusal accused the Government of trying to control independent media and terrorize journalists through the bill. “The Government wants to silence critical voices and has tried to introduce a system where press is under government’s thumb. This bill has exposed the government ill-intention. We have realized that the two-thirds majority government has developed a hunger for power,” Bhusal said.
Meanwhile, senior leader of Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Bamdev Gautam, on May 23 issued a press release urging the Government and the concerned bodies not to pass Nepal Media Council Bill, reports The Himalayan Times. Stating that journalism was the pillar of democracy, Gautam expressed concern about controversial provisions in the bill that could prove detrimental to press freedom. “Independent journalists speak for those who cannot raise their voice. They are also the watchdog and mirror of the society. That’s why, press has been accepted as the fourth estate,” Gautam was quoted as saying in his release.