Nepal ex-prime minister arrested

The former prime minister of Nepal, Sher Bahadur Deuba, has been arrested in Kathmandu after refusing to appear before an anti-corruption panel.

Mr Deuba was removed from office by King Gyanendra on 1 February when the king seized control of the government.

Mr Deuba's supporters chanted slogans when he was brought before the Royal Commission on Corruption Control later on Wednesday.

The former premier has called the panel unconstitutional and illegal.

Phone lines cut
A group of about 50 policemen arrested the former prime minister at his home in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Minendra Rijal, a member of the Nepali Congress (Democratic) Party, told the AFP news agency.

The BBC's Charles Havilland in Kathmandu says that there had been days of speculation that Mr Deuba would be arrested.

The king says he acted as the government was not doing its job

Last Wednesday, Mr Deuba was summoned by the commission, which has sweeping powers of arrest and detention, to answer questions on alleged irregularities in a lucrative drinking water contract.

However, he refused to go, accusing the commission of waging a vendetta against those opposed to the king taking power.

When Mr Deuba was arrested authorities were keen to avoid media attention, our correspondent says, cutting power and telephone lines to Mr Deuba's house, before making their move.

The arrest comes just four days before the emergency measures imposed by King Gyanendra in February are due to expire.

The king said he seized absolute power and suspended civil liberties because Mr Deuba's government had failed to tackle a violent insurgency by Maoist rebels in which 11,000 people have been killed.

He also accuses the Deuba administration of failing to adequately prepare the ground for elections in the spring. Sphere: Related Content