Summary:

• The Kathmandu District Attorney’s Office filed a cybercrime case against journalist Dil Bhusan Pathak at Kathmandu District Court on June 30, 2025.
• The case was registered by the Cyber Bureau of Nepal Police, accusing Pathak of spreading hate and hostility through content published on his YouTube channel "Tough Talk."
• The allegations claim that Pathak’s videos violated the Electronic Transactions Act by disseminating material intended to provoke hatred.
• This case followed an interim order from Patan High Court issued 11 days earlier, which prevented authorities from arresting Pathak without legal grounds.
• Despite this, the Attorney’s Office proceeded based on an investigation report submitted by the Cyber Bureau, and an arrest warrant was reissued with notices for Pathak to appear in court.
• Cyber Bureau maintains their role is only to investigate and submit reports; the court decides guilt or innocence.
• Media experts criticize the case as part of a “troubling pattern” of misuse of the Electronic Transactions Act to intimidate journalists and restrict freedom of expression.
• They argue such disputes should be handled by civil courts or the Press Council Nepal, not criminal courts.
• The High Court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to justify Pathak’s immediate detention, emphasizing due legal process.
• The case relates to Pathak’s videos questioning alleged financial activities linked to Jaiveer Singh Deuba, son of former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba.
• Pathak’s legal team challenged the arrest warrant as lacking legal grounds and violating journalistic freedom.

In short, the case is seen as a serious threat to press freedom in Nepal, with concerns about abuse of legal provisions to silence critical journalism.

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