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The 2568th birth anniversary of Siddhartha Gautam popular around the world as Buddha, the harbinger of peace is being celebrated today.

Buddha Jayanti is celebrated every year on the full moon day of the month of Baisakh in the Lunar calendar. As Buddha's birth, enlightenment and death falls on the full moon day of Baishakh, Buddhists around the world, including in Nepal, celebrate the day with reverence and devotion to Buddha.

Likewise, Buddhist monks and religious leaders sit in chaityas, monasteries, vihars etc., and perform traditional rituals.

Special events are held in Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha and in Kapilvastu, Swayambhu and Boudha.

Siddhartha Gautam was born to King Suddhodhan and Queen Mayadevi in Lumbini of present Rupandehi district in 563 BC i.e. 2568 years ago. Born as a prince, he became worried seeing the sufferings of the people.

At the age of 29, he left the palace and went for meditation and penance.

Also today, the Ubhauli festival is being celebrated especially by the Kirant Rai community across the country.

During the festival, there is a tradition of worshiping nature before planting the crops to ensure that the land gives good output. Chandi dance is also performed on the occasion of this festival.

Sakela dance is also performed among different sects of the Kirant community.

Meanwhile in Kathmandu, the Kirant Rai Yayokkha is hosting a special event including prayers and worshipping Sakelasthan in Hattiban of Lalitpur.

However, the people of Ainselukharka Rural Municipality of Khotang celebrate this festival after the 22nd of the month of Jetha (first week of June) in the Lunar calendar.

The Nepali Congress, the main opposition party in the Federal Parliament, has decided to hit the streets demanding a parliamentary inquiry against Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane, who faces charges of misappropriating cooperative funds, his resignation and return of cooperative depositors’ embezzled funds.

The joint meeting of the Congress Central Committee and the Parliamentary Party held on Wednesday decided to stage a demonstration on Friday in Kathmandu and also organize protests outside the Kathmandu valley thereafter. 

The Congress central meeting maintained that Lamichhane should not remain in power because he had used rude, violent and insulting words in the parliament, a leader participating in the meeting informed, adding that it also decided to demand the recouping of cooperative victims’ embezzled deposits.

The government is heading on the path of authoritarianism instead of forming a parliamentary probe committee to look into cases of cooperative fraud, leaving Congress leaders with no other option than organizing protests against such an undemocratic culture, said Dila Sangraula, Congress central member and lawmaker.

“Now, Congress leaders will take to the streets. We have decided to stage the protest not only in the Parliament but also on the roads. Our protest will continue until the parliamentary probe committee is formed and the victims of cooperatives get justice,” she said.

Earlier, the major ruling and opposition parties represented in the Federal Parliament failed to agree on the terms of reference (ToR) for the parliamentary committee to investigate the issue of cooperative fraud, rendering Sunday’s meeting of the working group at the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs inconclusive. 

The NC has long been obstructing the parliamentary proceedings, alleging the involvement of Deputy Prime Minister Lamichhane in the fraud and demanding the formation of a parliamentary committee to ensure a fair investigation into the case whereas the CPN-UML and RSP in particular have made it clear that an individual-centric probe is simply unacceptable.

The Dhanusha District Court on Wednesday sent Kailash Sirohiya, chairperson of Kantipur Media Group, to judicial custody for three days. Judge Chudaman Khadka issued an order to this effect after police presented Sirohiya in court, requesting a remand to investigate a complaint related to his citizenship certificate.

Police had initially requested a 10-day remand, while the district attorney’s office recommended a five-day remand. Sirohiya was arrested on Tuesday from Kantipur Publications in Thapathali, Kathmandu. He was subsequently taken to Dhanusha based on a complaint from Indrajit Mahato of Sarlahi district on April 28. Mahato, a member of Rastriya Swatantra Party led by Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane, has accused Sirohiya of holding multiple citizenships and sought an investigation under the Citizenship Act 2006.

Sirohiya’s arrest has been met with condemnation from the media fraternity and political leaders, who have described it as a violation of the constitution and a case of abuse of state powers.

Editors from the mainstream media asserted on Wednesday that Sirohiya’s arrest was intended to intimidate the press. In a joint letter to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, they expressed concerns over the context, allegations, and method of Sirohiya’s arrest, which they believe raises serious questions.

“We perceive the arrest from within a media house as an attempt to pressure and instill fear in the press. Government agencies have never interrogated Sirohiya regarding these allegations,” stated the letter signed by 31 editors associated with various media organizations.

Meanwhile, The United States said that freedom of press, accountability, and transparency are guiding principles for the United States as it continues to work for “a more perfect union.”

“We expect that as Nepal continues to show its hard-won democracy, the Government and people of Nepal will also have a meaningful dialogue about how to ensure good governance, freedom of the press and people’s fundamental rights,” reads a statement issued by the US Embassy in Kathmandu. The Embassy issued the statement a day after police detained Sirohiya. 

Cricketer Sandeep Lamichhane is to miss the T-20 World Cup to be held in the United States and West Indies.

Nepal spinner Lamichhane is going to miss the World Cup after the United States denied visa to him.

Lamichhane has informed through the social media that he was denied visa to the United States for the upcoming T20 World Cup.

He informed that this time also the US Embassy in Kathmandu denied visa to him like in 2019.

Lamichhane apologized to his supporters after he missed the World Cup.

He was given clean chit in a rape case by the Nepal High Court this week.

The main opposition Nepali Congress is to organize a mass meeting in Kathmandu on Friday demanding formation of a parliamentary probe committee to investigate cooperative fraud charges against Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane.

A joint meeting of the Central Committee and Parliamentary Party decided to organize a mass assembly for the justice of the victims of cooperatives.

Congress central member and lawmaker Dila Sangraula said that the government is heading on the path of authoritarianism instead of forming a parliamentary probe committee to look into cooperative fraud cases.

She said that the Congress leaders are compelled to hit the streets against the undemocratic culture of the government.

“Now, Congress leaders will take to the streets. We have decided to stage the protest not only in the Parliament but also on the roads. Our protest will continue until the parliamentary probe committee is formed and the victims of cooperatives get justice,” she said.

Two persons have gone missing while descending from Everest summit.

Those missing are Sherpa guide Tenzi Sherpa (21) and British citizen Daniel Paul Peterson (40) according to Department of Tourism director Kali Bahadur Bhujel.

They have reportedly slipped from an altitude of 8750 meters at the South Summit this morning. They successfully ascended Everest on the morning of May 21. 

Their expedition was facilitated by the Eight K. Expedition Pvt Ltd. 

A team of six trained mountain guides have been mobilized to search for the missing climbers.

The Department has called for cooperation from all quarters in the search operation for the two.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 15.54 points to close at 2,131.49 points on Wednesday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 5.06 points to close at 382. 67 points.

A total of 14,419,521-shares of 318 companies were traded for Rs 5. 68 billion.

Meanwhile, Samudayik Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (SLBSL) and Buddha Bhumi Nepal Hydropower Company Limited (BNHC) were the top gainers today, with their price surging by 10. 00 percent.

Likewise, Manushi Laghubitta Bittiya Sanstha Limited (MLBS) was the top loser as its price fell by 8.05 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 3. 37 trillion.

Bangladesh Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Saber Hossain Chowdhury, has expressed concern, saying Bangladesh's existence itself might be imperiled with the melting of snow in the Nepal Himalayas due to climate change.

Addressing the 'Global Dialogue on Mountain, People and Climate' kicked off in Kathmandu from today to draw global attention to the impact of climate change in the Himalayas, he said the climate change has impacted more the Himalayas, leading to rapid snow melting, which could produce problems like flooding and others in Bangladesh.

The Bangladeshi minister called attention of the participants, expressing concern that the very existence of the downstream and coastal regions is at risk due to the melting of snow in the Himalayas, if timely steps and due alertness are not adopted for mitigating the climate change impact.

He stressed on paying attention to minimizing the climate change impact and adaptation for securing climate resilience.

"The developed countries emit 81 percent of the total global carbon emission. Developing countries like Nepal and Bangladesh are facing problems due to this. The developed countries have not implemented their commitments made at various climate conferences regarding lowering the carbon emission. Now, they should be prodded," he added.

Stating that the government alone cannot alleviate poverty and prevent the climate change impacts, Minister Hossain stressed on the need of managing the budget required for implementing the climate change adaptation programs. "Political will is needed to address the problems created by the adverse impact of climate change," he reiterated.

Experts from 25 countries are participating in the Global Dialogue. More than 200 persons representing the mountainous and small island nations including Nepal, the international community, development partners, INGOs, the private sector and the civil society are attending the program.

The experts will deliberate on topics such as making coordination, prioritizing and strengthening climate resilient activities based on mountain ecosystem.