Nepali Congress submits memorandum to govt against IT Bill

Nepali Congress, the main opposition party in the country, on Sunday submitted a memorandum to the government against the controversial Information Technology Bill, which was recently cleared by the Parliamentary Committee on Development and Technology.

The IT bill, which is under consideration in the house, has a provision of upto five years in jail and a fine of upto Rs 15 lakh if a person is found to have harassed or demeaned or defamed another through the Internet or social media.

The party handed over the memorandum letter to the Assistant Chief District Officer in Kathmandu Gaulochan Saiju, according to a statement issued by the party's central office.

The memos were also submitted to all 77 districts administration offices in the country, the statement said.

The Nepali Congress has said the bill will curtail democratic rights enshrined in the constitution. The party takes "recent developments seriously" and "strongly urges the government to rectify them".

The party has warned that it will "take to to the street, if the government doesn't listen," the statement said.

The Federation of Nepalese Journalists, legal and Constitution experts, as well as human rights activists have been strongly raising their voice against the IT Bill.

However, the government has dismissed criticism of the bill, saying it aims to control cyber-crime.