By Bhagirath Yogi
BBC News, Kathmandu
A watchdog for press freedom has expressed concern over an apparent plan by the Nepal government to arrest the editors of two leading newspapers.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says it has received reports that police planned to arrest them for publishing a cartoon in their papers.
The cartoon, which ran on Sunday, depicted the monarchy as a dead animal.
King Gyanendra has imposed restrictions on the media ever since he seized direct power in February.
The CPJ's concerns became public as a senior government official, Tanka Dhakala, warned that the government was doing "serious homework" to take action against some newspapers but refrained from naming them.
The CPJ quoted the editor of Kantipur daily, Narayan Wagle, and the editor of its sister publication The Kathmandu Post, Prateek Pradhan, as saying the authorities were laying the legal groundwork for their arrest.
The organisation said this was in retaliation for coverage of protests against King Gyanendra, and for Sunday's political cartoon.
'Ominous message'
On Tuesday, local authorities summoned the two editors and their publisher for clarification.
The executive director of CPJ, Ann Cooper, said the threat of jail for editors from the country's leading media group sends an ominous message to the local press and the international community.
She also called upon King Gyanendra to stop harassment of the Kantipur group and its journalists.
Dozens of journalists were arrested and a number of newspapers ceased publications temporarily after king Gyanendra seized power in February this year and imposed nationwide emergency.
Though the emergency was lifted after three months, groups fighting for press freedom say a number of restrictions on media are still in place in the country.
source: target=_blank>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4186610.stm
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