Publisher and editor of Najaronline.com, Jhalak Pali, has been facing threats and abusive messages since May 28 after publishing a news report on the portal. The incident took place in Doti, Sudurpaschim Province of Nepal.
Talking to Freedom Forum, journalist Pali shared that he had published a news story titled- ‘A youth died after falling from the roof’ based on information shared in a closed Messenger group named ‘Journalists with Police’. The group was created by the District Police Office (DPO), Doti to disseminate official information to journalists so that credible news can be reported. The information was shared in the group chat at 6:19 a.m. on May 28.
“Based on the information, I published the news on the portal, and other news outlets also published it. Meanwhile, the family and relatives of the deceased had blocked the highway, demanding a prompt investigation and punishment for those responsible in the case. On June 14, the police circulated a memorandum of understanding (MoU) among the police and victim's families, which stated that journalists, including myself, should be present in judicial questioning for publishing the news, which they claimed was baseless and misleading,” said Pali.
He further informed that DPO Chief Binod Sharma called him and urged him to apologize to the victim's family so that they would lift the blockade on the same day. “This was very concerning. So, I issued a statement on my Facebook wall on June 15, expressing solidarity with the victim's family and calling for a fair investigation into the case,” he added.
Freedom Forum condemns the threat and intimidation to the journalist. FF urges the concerned side to approach Press Council Nepal for any discontent on the published news.
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