Tensions were high in southeastern Nepal on Monday as a violent communal clash erupted in the Sunsari district that shares a porous border with India. Loudspeakers and religious displays at different local events also led to one person being killed and scores injured, including police officers.
Local authorities have responded quickly by imposing strict, indefinite prohibitory orders across vulnerable parts of the district to try to prevent further escalation.
Escalation in Local Events. As per the District Police Office information, the trouble started on Sunday night in the Kaptanganj area of Devgunj Rural Municipality (Dewanganj). There were two different religious organizations which were planning their own public meetings. The conflict soon arose over the volume of loudspeakers (that is to say music before a pilgrimage) and the large number of religious flags.
What started as a heated verbal fight quickly escalated into a full-scale physical confrontation. Crowds swelled and both sides began throwing stones and resorting to aggressive vandalism, local police forces rushed to the scene to restore order.
But the intervention was met with fierce resistance. Security personnel were subjected to heavy, coordinated stone-pelting from both factions, Kathmandu Post reported. Some eight Nepal Police officers were injured in the clash. Chief Inspector Rakesh Rai, head of Dewanganj Area Police Office, suffered severe head trauma and required five stitches. The injuries involved officers and civilians, ranging from minor to moderate.
Police Firing and Casualties
As the mob became increasingly uncontrollable and refused to heed the initial tear gas shells and warning shots fired into the air, security forces (such as Nepal Police and Armed Police Force) were forced to open fire.
Om Prakash Mehta, 24, a resident of Kaptanganj (Devgunj Rural Municipality-3), suffered severe gunshot wounds in the security operation. He was rushed to Biratnagar hospital where doctors immediately declared him dead on arrival. In all, more than twenty people were injured in the midnight chaos, including civilians and security officials.
Indefinite Prohibitory Orders and Border Sensitivity. In response to the volatile situation, Chief District Officer Basudev Ghimire and the District Administration Office, Sunsari, imposed sweeping restrictive orders beginning at 7:00 a.m. on Monday. Gatherings or assemblies of more than four people, public meetings, rallies and demonstrations, sit-ins and organized picketing are prohibited.
The administration has warned that any violation of the decree will be severely punished under the Local Administration Act, 1971. Violators could face up to NPR 500 to NPR 1,000 in fines or up to one month in prison.
Sunsari is situated near India’s Bihar state and is a major cross-border commercial and transit artery. Because of its strategic position and demographic sensitivities, regional security has been greatly increased. The Armed Police Force and other police forces have been deployed to cover Kaptanganj Bazaar and other transit routes. The police say the heavy security blanket has brought a tense calm to the area, but the orders will not come to a close until public safety and normalcy are maintained.
