Following the appointment of journalist, editor, and fact-checker Umesh Shrestha as Chairman of Press Council Nepal, the Council’s dignity and active oversight have entered a new phase. As the Council actively moves to enforce media ethics and professional conduct, legal practitioners themselves have begun registering petitions and complaints with the body. In this context, acting on a complaint filed by authorized advocate Deepak Rai on behalf of Gautam Sweets (Tiptop), Press Council Nepal has issued an official letter addressed to 'Nepal Aaja'.
Four Key Points Raised by the Council
The letter sent by the Council cites provisions of the Journalist Code of Conduct, 2073 (First Amendment, 2076) and demands clarification primarily on four key points. First, it requests a response regarding the presentation of a decade-old incident in a planned and irrelevant manner that created public confusion. Second, directing the outlet to submit documents or factual evidence supporting the claims made in the news report, the Press Council demanded proof that a mouse was indeed found inside a Tiptop samosa. Third, it raises questions about what editorial efforts were made to obtain the response of the accused party prior to broadcasting the news, why the response was omitted if received, or the reason if no reaction was sought. Fourth, reminding that working against professional ethics with the intent to cause undue gain or loss to anyone is prohibited, the Council asked for the rationale behind packaging a decade-old incident into a social media newscard as if it were a recent event, along with objective grounds proving that the content was prepared impartially. This detailed, point-by-point demand for clarification by a regulatory body regarding consumer rights coverage has drawn keen attention across media circles.
Past Penalties and KMC Market Monitoring Record
On the other hand, in the context of food safety, Tiptop has a prior record of being penalized during market monitoring conducted by the local administration. During the tenure of Mayor Balendra (Balen) Shah at Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) in Bikram Sambat 2080, the metropolis took direct action against the Tiptop samosa establishment. During a market inspection of the shop operating in Ward 17 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, inedible and sub-standard items were detected in sweets, including 'Dudhbari', leading the metropolis to impose a cash fine of Rs 200,000 on Tiptop. Following the discovery of inedible materials during regular monitoring, the metropolis also issued strict directives demanding that unhealthy items be removed from the shop, staff behavior and speech be improved, and proper temperatures for dairy products be maintained.
Operator Silence and Ongoing Legal Proceedings
Regarding the entire affair, the operators of Tiptop have refrained from coming forward to offer direct comments, delegating all legal and administrative procedures to their legal counsel. When asked to clarify Gautam Sweets' official position on the Rs 200,000 fine imposed by the metropolis during former Mayor Balendra Shah's tenure and the accompanying directives, Tiptop's representative, Advocate Deepak Rai, declined to comment. Advocate Rai cited that the matter is currently sub-judice before Press Council Nepal, adding that their focus remains on coordinating with the Council to bring the legal process to a conclusion. Nevertheless, the media outlet noted that should Tiptop operators or official stakeholders wish to provide further clarification or state their views in the future, adequate space will be accorded to them.
Strengthening Food Safety and Responsible Journalism
Continuous vigilance by the media to protect public health and consumer rights, combined with legal procedures undertaken by regulatory bodies, contributes to establishing a disciplined market system. The prior monitoring records of local government, the social responsibility of the media, and the legal review initiated by the Press Council are expected to make established norms of food safety and responsible journalism more transparent and robust.
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