The attack on Nepal Communist Party lawmaker Niru Pal on Tuesday has link to political crime, Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa told the Lower House on Thursday.

Addressing the House of Representatives (HoR) meeting, he said the attack has drawn the government’s attention and the incident is being investigated.

The minister said those against the country’s progress and wishing to create instability have intensified such criminal activities at a time when the country is heading on the path to development and prosperity.

He claimed the government has succeeded in discouraging activities aimed at “overturning the state”. Saying that the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl in Nimbukheda, Kanchanpur’s Bhimdatta Municipality-18 has stunned the government.

The minister warned the government would take stern action against the perpetrators involved in the gruesome crime. He said police have arrested two suspects and murder case registered against them based on the complaint of the victim’s family.

The minister said a team led by Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) DSP has initiated further investigation into the case.

The local administration has been directed to take precautionary measures to ensure such horrifying

crimes do not take place in the future.

The minister blamed such crimes on the unregulated consumption of alcohol and smuggling of narcotics. He also said the irresponsible consumption of alcohol by men has increased domestic and sexual violence against women and young girls.

The government will take stern steps and launch a campaign to control alcohol in order to curb such activities that invariably take place when a person is intoxicated, Minister Thapa said.