**By Joanna Jolly **
BBC News, Kathmandu
**A Nepalese minister who assaulted a local district officer last week has spoken out in defence of her actions.**State Minister for Agriculture and Co-operatives Karima Begum said she was justified in beating the officer because he tried to assault her.
There is growing pressure for her to apologise or resign over her actions.
The officer in question, Durga Prasad Bhandari, denies the claims and insists she beat him for not providing a new car to pick her up from the airport.
Protests
Karima Begum told reporters the reason she slapped the district officer repeatedly around the face was that he had grabbed her hand and tried to pull her into a room.
She said apologising was out of the question and that she was planning to file an official complaint against the officer.
Nepal’s Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal has said he is talking to Karima Begum, in an effort to persuade her to either apologise or resign.
A number of organisations representing government employees have protested against her actions.
Civil servants in the district of Parsa, where the assault took place, say they will give the minister until Friday to apologise.
If she does not, they plan to shut down all government offices in the district.