Twenty journalists were today arrested in Nepal after they angered the anti-graft body's chief by questioning him about the smuggling of betel nut.
The journalists were arrested after they asked Lokman Singh Karki, chief of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), about the smuggling of the item in recent times.
Karki lost his cool on hearing the questions, according to Bikram Niraula, a member of the Federation of Nepali Journalists. The reporters were detained at a police office in Morang district.
The journalists were invited to the District Administration Office for a news conference with Karki. After finishing his address, the official asked if the reporters had any queries.
But Karki lost his temper as soon as a journalist said, "The smuggling of betel nut has become open after he took charge as the CIAA head."
Karki asked: "Where did you read about it? Don't you even know the way to ask questions?"
Soon after Karki expressed his anger at the journalists, police arrested them without further inquiry.
Following the arrests, local journalists staged a sit-in at Morang District Police Office. They demanded an apology from Karki for his "misbehaviour" and asked authorities to justify the arrests.
The CIAA alleged journalists had "misbehaved" with Karki during the press meet.
