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The code of conduct for the by-elections slated for April 23 will come into effect from Friday. According to the Election Commission, the code of conduct will remain in force in Chitwan, Bara and Tanahun districts from April 7 to till the completion of the elections. EC Spokesperson Shaligram Sharma Paudel said the EC is implementing the code of conduct by exercising the right granted to it by clause 22 of the Election Act, 2017 and clause 1 of the Election Code of Conduct, 2079 BS. The lower house by-elections are taking place in Chitwan constituency-2, Bara-2 and Tanahun-1. Federal government and government ministers, province government and province ministers, constitutional bodies and their officials, Nepal government or province government bodies and their officials, local executive and its members, employees of federal, province and local levels, security bodies, security personnel and employees are required to be abiding by the elections code of conduct. Likewise, government and semi-government offices and public organizations and their employees, political parties and their sister organizations, candidates and the their relatives, political parties and election representatives of candidates, people holding the public post, observation  committee officials and monitors, observation institutions and observers, media and its employees, journalists, private and non-government organizations and their officials and employees, schools, universities and their teachers and employees, voters, development partners, projects operated by the government and semi-government levels and their employees,  bodies and people engaged in voter education programs, private banks and finances, cooperatives, corporate and industries and their officials, employees and workers officials of goods and service providing sectors, their employees and workers should abide by the elections code of conduct.  

Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal called on Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Thursday. In the meeting held at the Beijing-based Foreign Ministry, they discussed bilateral relationship between Nepal and China, exchange of visits, development cooperation, trade, investment and tourism among others issues. Nepali Ambassador to China Bishnu Pukar Shrestha, Joint Secretary at the Foreign Ministry Lok Bahadur Thapa and senior officials at the Foreign Ministry of both the countries and high-ranking officials were present in the meeting. The 15th meeting of the Bilateral Diplomatic Consultation Mechanism between Nepal and China will be held on Friday. A Nepali team led by Foreign Secretary Paudyal had reached Beijing to take part in the meeting.

US Ambassador to Nepal Dean R. Thompson paid a courtesy call on Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Narayan Kaji Shrestha. In the meeting held at the Ministry of Home Affairs today, the two discussed various matters relating to Nepal-US bilateral relations and the exchange of cooperation, according to Kamal Giri, press coordinator of DPM Shrestha. On the occasion, the Minister said that the incumbent government has focused on completing the remaining task of the peace process as per the spirit of the Comprehensive Peace Accord, and sought support from Nepal's friendly international donors towards this. Shrestha informed the US envoy Thompson that the related Bill was already presented in the parliament to ensure transitional justice. Ambassador Thompson said that the US wanted to see completion of the remaining task of the peace process in Nepal and pledged to take the lead to facilitate with diplomatic stakeholders for the same. To the concern expressed by the American envoy on the prospects of political instability affecting the development works, DPM Shrestha assured that it would not affect the development endeavors, stating that Nepal was still in the process of institutionalizing the federal democratic republic system. Furthermore, Thompson said that the US government would provide full support in strengthening democracy in Nepal. Since the Peace Corps' works were affected after COVID-19 pandemic, Ambassador Thompson requested with DPM Shrestha on easing off the issuance of visa for Peace Corp volunteers to which the latter committed to facilitate the matter in coordinating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Thompson also expressed concerns surrounding American investment in Nepal and security of the American working in Nepal to which DPM Shrestha assured of full security for that.

Former President Donald Trumppleaded not guilty to 34 felony criminal charges of falsifying business records in Manhattan criminal court Tuesday afternoon, CNN reported.

Trump surrendered and was placed under arrest Tuesday before he was arraigned in a historic and unprecedented court appearance, in which the former president heard the charges against him for the first time. While the arraignment was routine, the case is now poised to linger over Trump's 2024 candidacy as he fights the charges both in court and in public.

Prosecutors alleged that Trump sought to undermine the integrity of the 2016 election through a hush money scheme with payments made to women who claimed they had extramarital affairs with Trump. He has denied the affairs.

Trump was part of an unlawful plan to suppress negative information, including an illegal payment of $130,000 that was ordered by the defendant to suppress the negative information that would hurt his campaign, prosecutors alleged.

Trump "repeatedly and fraudulently falsified New York business records to conceal criminal conduct that hid damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election," according to the charging documents.

After the arraignment, Trump immediately flew back to Florida. He held an event with his supporters Tuesday evening at his Mar-a-Lago resort, where Trump made his public case against the indictment and previewed how he intends to fight against the charges politically as he runs again for the White House in 2024.

While he was warned by Judge Juan Merchan during Tuesday's arraignment not to make comments that could "jeopardize the rule of law" or create civil unrest, Trump railed later that evening against Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the judge himself, according to CNN.

"I never thought anything like this could happen in America, never thought it could happen. The only crime that I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it," Trump said.

"It's an insult to our country," he added.

The indictment returned last week by a grand jury against Trump was unsealed Tuesday and provided the public -- and Trump's legal team -- with the first details about the specific charges he will face.

The indictment was quickly criticized by Trump's Republican allies, and even some legal experts raised questions about the case. CNN Senior Legal Analyst Elie Honig said that prosecutors will have to make their case that Trump committed felonies and not misdemeanors by showing that the falsified records were used to conceal another crime, which was not identified in the indictment.

"One of the complicated legal questions here is in order to bump that up from a misdemeanor to a felony you have to show that those records were falsified to commit some other crime, some second crime," Honig said. "You heard the defense lawyers, I think, rightly, complaining about that."

Bragg said at a news conference after the arraignment that the indictment did not specify what laws Trump broke because "the law does not so require."

Bragg highlighted one law that Trump allegedly broke during the conference: "New York state election law -- what makes it a crime to conspire to promote a candidacy by unlawful means." He also mentioned violations of a federal election law capping contribution limits, CNN reported.

The evidence, Bragg said, will be "borne out in a public courtroom in downtown Manhattan," he said.