Abusing editor Dhungana about Ravi Lamichhane’s news is reprehensible: FNJ

The Associated Province Committee of the Federation of Nepali Journalists has drawn attention to the fact that journalists are being abused over the news published about the citizenship dispute of the Chairman of Rastriya Swatantra Party, Rabi Lamichhane.

An online website called ukeraa.com had published a news that Lamichhane was once an American citizen and after renouncing his American citizenship, even though there is a legal provision for reclaiming Nepali citizenship, he didn’t complete that process.

A complaint was lodged at the Election Commission on Tuesday seeking to scrap Lamichhane’s candidacy from Chitwan-2 claiming that the copy of the citizenship that he had submitted while filing his candidacy was not valid.

The committee objected to the fact that on the topic of the news, the editor of Ukeraa.com, KP Dhungana is being abused and insulted on social media, using obscene words.

In a statement issued by the Royal Acharya,  general secretary of the committee, it is said that pressuring and discouraging the journalism sector for the interests of a single person or a political party is a direct interference on the freedom of the press.

The Associate Committee of the Federation also said to immediately stop mistreating journalists by using social media.

As per Section 10 of the Citizenship Act, any person who acquires citizenship of a foreign country automatically loses Nepali citizenship.

The Act, however, has a provision for reclaiming Nepali citizenship after one renounces foreign citizenship.

An application needs to be submitted to the respective office to reclaim Nepali citizenship.

Lamichhane, the Chairman of the Rastriya Swatantra Party is the candidate for the House of Representatives for Chitwan Constituency-2.