Talking to Republica, Oli denied allegations that the he was providing political protection to Basnet. “I have not given any protection or refuge to Basnet or any other Youth Force activist,” Oli said and added that his name had been unnecessarily dragged into controversy by some elements that had enmity against him.[break]
Oli has been blamed by sections of the news media for harboring the accused involved in assaulting Dhakal. “I have been accused of bringing Basnet in my own car and keeping him in my house. But how is that possible when so many police guard my residence?” he questioned.
Defending Basnet, Oli said, “Journalist Dhakal was not kidnapped in the first place. It is a false allegation against Basnet.” Asked why Mahesh Basnet, president of the Youth Association Nepal, had said publicly that Parshuram was under his (Oli´s) protection, he said, “One cannot discredit the entire Youth Force as an organization due to the mistakes of a few individuals.”
Responding to a query on why the Youth Force is ignoring the orders of the UML party to hand over Parshuram to the police, Oli opined, “This is not for the party to decide. The government should take action.”
Oli´s remark has come at a time when police investigations into the attack on Dhakal on June 5 have established Prashuram Basnet´s involvement in the case. According to police findings, the assailants had repeatedly asked Dhakal why he had written against Basnet. Dhakal had issued a statement a few days ago saying that Basnet had threatened him at the CPN-UML party office where he had gone in connection with a news report.
Oli´s statement also comes at a time when the attack on Dhakal has been condemned by the media fraternity, civil society and international human rights organizations. Oli also said that he is on a week long “private visit” to India.
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