Valley
Dish Home’s Bhaisepati transmission unit torched
Cadres of the Netra Bikram Chand-led CPN Maoist allegedly carried out an arson attack at Dish Home Control Unit office in Bhaisepati early Wednesday morning.Manish Gautam
Cadres of the Netra Bikram Chand-led CPN Maoist allegedly carried out an arson attack at Dish Home Control Unit office in Bhaisepati early Wednesday morning.
Police said around six motorcycle-borne assailants sprinkled petrol on the transmitting unit at the control office and set it on fire after taking control over the security guards.
The transmitting unit has been damaged and services of the company came to a halt for over hour owing to the incident. A letter signed by Khadga Bahadur Bishwokarma “Prakanda” was sent a month ago to the Dish Home office, asking them to stop transmitting Hindi channels inside the country. Dish Home officials said the Wednesday’s act was aimed at intimidating them as they continued with their services unfettered.
Senior Superintendent of Police Pitambar Adhikari, chief of the Metropolitan Police Range in Lalitpur, said they are searching for the miscreants based on clues, including motorcycle numbers and their clothing. However, no arrests have been made yet.
The Dish Home office has provided video footages recorded by six closed-circuit cameras but the early morning haze and low light have made it difficult to identify the persons involved in the attack.
“When we stopped Indian channel sometimes back as a gesture of protest, we got warning from Madhesi people. When we transmit Hindi channels, we are threatened by another group,” said Dish Home CEO Sudhir Acharya. “This act is a breach of people’s right to access information. We have resumed our services and will function uninterrupted.”
The company has estimated a loss of over Rs 20 million as it has compelled to resume services from a backup in its Naxal-based office.
- The company said it will take over two months before they can resume the services in full capacity.