November 13, 2024: Snapshot of today's main news

Kathmandu, November 13 — In this section, we present the key headlines of the day. If you have been busy and missed the news, we have got you covered. Here are the highlights.

Congress VP Gurung denies involvement in Miteri Cooperative scam, explains divorce

Nepali Congress Vice President Dhanraj Gurung has provided clarification to the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) regarding his divorce from his wife amid allegations of his involvement in the Miteri Cooperative fraud.

Responding to questions about his involvement in the scam and whether the divorce was fabricated, Gurung stated, "I have legally divorced. It was not a forgery."

CIB SP Hobindra Bogati confirmed to Ratopati that Gurung was called in to provide a detailed statement about the incident.

Gurung explained that he had taken a loan of NPR 1.2 million from Miteri Savings, located in Lalitpur Metropolitan City-5, to send his son abroad. He clarified that the loan was taken as an ordinary member. However, during the divorce proceedings, he had pledged his house as collateral to repay the loan and agreed not to make further claims from his wife. He further stated, "I repaid NPR 8.4 million, which was my share. Apart from that, I have not misappropriated any funds from the cooperative."

Maoists hold power in both government and streets: Prachanda

Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', Chairman of the Nepal Communist Party (Maoist Centre) and former Prime Minister, stated that the Maoist party is currently in power both in the government and on the streets. He also emphasized that the only alternative to democracy is a stronger democracy itself.

Speaking at the Kantipur Conclave 2024 organized by Kantipur Media Group on Wednesday, under the session titled "Prachandapath: Street or Power?", Chairman Prachanda stated that the Maoists are active in both spheres: power and the streets.

"Our power is both in the government and on the streets. It's very clear," Prachanda remarked.

He further clarified that the Maoist Centre holds the position of the main opposition in Parliament, which he described as another form of power. 

Supreme Cooperative fraud: Lamichhane questioned for second day, denies involvement

Former Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane was questioned for a second consecutive day on Wednesday by the Rupandehi District Government Attorney's Office regarding allegations of organized fraud involving funds from the Supreme Cooperative in Butwal. As Lamichhane's statement was not yet complete, the questioning will continue on Thursday, according to the office.

During his two-day statement, Lamichhane has denied any involvement in the fraud related to the Supreme Cooperative case. He maintained that he was innocent, asserting that he had no role in the organized embezzlement of funds from the cooperative. 

Lamichhane rejected the allegations that he had taken NPR 142.9 million from the Supreme Saving and Credit Cooperative and spent it at Gorkha Media Network Pvt. Ltd. He claimed that he had no knowledge of how the cooperative’s funds ended up at Gorkha Media, stating that GB Rai was responsible for all the related activities and that he was unaware of the details.

Former VP Nanda Kishor Pun 'Pasang' set to rejoin Maoist Centre

Former Vice President and ex-commander of the Maoist People's Liberation Army, Nanda Kishor Pun 'Pasang', is set to rejoin the CPN (Maoist Centre).

According to sources, a consensus has been reached with party chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' to assign Pasang an important responsibility within the party leadership.

Pasang had parted ways with the Maoist party in 2015 after being elected Vice President. Following the completion of his second term in 2022, he had remained politically inactive.

Sources close to the Maoist party say that Prachanda and Pasang have had several rounds of discussions regarding his return to the party, and an agreement has now been reached. "He will soon return to active politics within the party," the source said.

Indian Army Chief Dwivedi to visit Nepal

Indian Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Upendra Dwivedi is set to visit Nepal. On the formal invitation of Nepal's Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Ashok Raj Sigdel, General Dwivedi will embark on a five-day visit to Nepal.

According to the Nepal Army's Directorate of Public Relations and Information, General Dwivedi will visit from November 20 to November 24.

During the visit, General Dwivedi is scheduled to pay tribute at the Bir Smarak (War Memorial) at Tundikhel, inspect honor guards at Army Headquarters, meet with COAS General Sigdel, interact with students at the Command and Staff College, and visit the Western Division Headquarters, as stated in a press release issued by the Directorate of Public Relations and Information on Wednesday.

TUSC confirms Assistant Professor exam on November 15 as scheduled

The Tribhuvan University Service Commission (TUSC) has confirmed that the examination for the position of Assistant Professor, scheduled for November 15, will proceed as planned. The vacancy for the Assistant Professor position, issued in 2020, had not been followed by an exam until now.

The commission clarified that despite partial lecturers warning of a possible postponement, the exam will take place on the scheduled date. 

In 2020, an advertisement was issued for 581 seats for the Assistant Professor position. A case was filed in the Supreme Court against the advertisement, and following the court's verdict, the commission set the date for the written exam.

Flight operations disrupted as dense fog engulfs Terai airports

Dense fog and haze have affected flight operations at airports in the Terai region. Due to reduced visibility caused by the fog, flights at Simara, Bharatpur, Bhairahawa, and Surkhet airports have been disrupted, according to the airport authorities.

Rinjee Sherpa, spokesperson for Tribhuvan International Airport, mentioned that flights are currently unable to operate at Bhairahawa and Surkhet airports. "Bhairahawa and Surkhet airports are closed, but regular flights are operating from other airports," he said.

Currently, there is partial influence of westerly winds and local winds across the country. The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology’s weather forecasting division has reported that the weather will be mostly clear across the country, except for partial cloud cover in the hilly areas of Koshi, Bagmati, Gandaki, and Lumbini.

Court rules Marwadi Sewa Samiti has no claim over Gaushala Dharamsala

The Kathmandu District Court has made public the full text of its ruling on the dispute concerning the Gaushala Dharamsala (cattle shelter) under the Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT).

The full text of the ruling, delivered by District Judge Kamal Prasad Pokharel on October 2, 2024, was recently made available. In the judgment, it was explained that the Marwadi community has no legal claim to any rights over the Gaushala Dharamsala.

The ruling states that Marwadis do not have any permanent occupancy rights, and that, under the terms of the agreement, the PADT has the right to terminate the contract if the terms are not followed.

Kulman Ghising defends legal basis for power disconnections

Kulman Ghising, Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA), addressed a press conference on Wednesday, defending all decisions made regarding the charges for dedicated and trunk lines, asserting that they were in line with the law.

He emphasized that the NEA had cut power to industries that failed to pay their bills in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations.

Ghising stated, “The authority has not deviated even an inch from the law and regulations. However, it is our duty to implement the Cabinet’s decision to restore the lines.” His tone and demeanor at the press conference suggested he was not entirely pleased with the Cabinet's decision to reconnect the lines.

Gold price drops slightly

Gold prices saw a slight decline on Wednesday.

The price of gold is currently set at NPR 162,200 per tola (11.66 grams).

This is a decrease from Tuesday's price of NPR 162,600, according to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers' Association.

On the other hand, silver prices have increased.

While silver was trading at NPR 1,925 per tola on Tuesday, the price has risen to NPR 1,940 per tola on Wednesday.

Delhi chokes as air pollution turns 'severe'

People in India's capital Delhi woke up to a thick layer of smog as the air quality deteriorated to severe levels in the city.

Delhi and its neighbouring cities are experiencing pollution levels that are at least 30-35 times the safe limit recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Every year, Delhi and northern states battle hazardous air during the winter months of October to January due to plummeting temperatures, smoke, dust, low wind speed, vehicular emissions and crop stubble burning.

This time, experts say that the condition is likely to get worse in the coming days.

According to IQAir, a Swiss-based Air Quality Index (AQI) monitoring group, pollution levels in several parts of Delhi touched the 500 mark on Wednesday morning.

Pakistan: Death count climbs to 26 after bus plunges into Indus River

At least 26 pe­o­ple, part of a wedding party, drowned after their bus plunged into Pakistan's Indus River in the Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan on Tues­day, Dawn reported.

Diamer SSP Sher Khan said that the bus, coming from Astore district of GB, was part of a wedding procession heading towards Punjab’s Chakwal district. Twelve of the remaining passengers are missing, and one passenger has survived the accident with injuries, the statement from the authorities said.

Israeli strikes in Mount Lebanon villages kill 23

At least 23 people have been killed in Israeli air strikes on two houses in central Lebanon where displaced families were reportedly living, the Lebanese health ministry says.

Fifteen people, mostly women and children, were killed in Joun and eight others were killed near Baalchmay. Both villages are in the Mount Lebanon region and outside areas where the armed group Hezbollah has a strong presence.

The Israeli military said it was looking into the strikes, which came after it hit what it said were a number of Hezbollah targets in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Nepal defeats UAE, qualifies for 2025 ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup

Nepal has secured a spot in the 2025 ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup, following a commanding 8-wicket victory over the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday. 

With the win, Nepal clinched qualification for the prestigious tournament, which will take place in Malaysia in 2025.

Set a target of 84 runs from 16.2 overs, Nepal reached the target in just 14.4 overs, losing only two wickets in the process.

Vinícius back for Brazil and Martínez for Argentina in South American 2026 World Cup qualifying

Argentina and Brazil will have two of their leading stars available again as South American qualifying for the 2026 World Cup resumes with the last two rounds of games this year.

Defending World Cup champion Argentina will once again count on goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who was suspended for two international matches in October. Brazil will bring back winger Vinícius Júnior, who missed the last two qualifiers through injury but has recovered.

South American leaders Argentina will play at Paraguay on Thursday, shortly after fourth-place Brazil visits Venezuela.