KATHMANDU, DEC 26 - Dozens of students were injured and two remain missing when the security forces intervened in a protest rally organised by the alliance of the seven student organisations, reports from Chitwan said today.
The incident occurred when the security forces tried to stop the students from chanting anti monarchy slogans who were burning tyres in front of the Birendra Multiple Campus at Bharatpur, as a part of their five-day-long protest programme that commenced today.
When the students refused to disperse, army fired eight rounds of shots in the air, our corespondent reported. "Army also reportedly manhandled the students even as the latter retreated."
Kailash Koirala, chairman of the Nepal Students’ Union (NSU) district committee and two other students Raj Bandhu Lamichane and Dilliraj Gautam were seriously injured in the army action.
They are being treated at the Bharatpur Hospital.
However, Umseh Neupane and Binod Thapa remain missing soon after the incident.
Eyewitnesses said army personnel were pulling them down from an ambulance.
Issuing a joint statement here, the alliance of seven student organisations said the armymen stopped an ambulance carrying five injured students to hospital, dragged the students out and beat them up severely.
"After that they were herded to the army barracks nearby," the statement added.
In a statement, Human Rights and Peace Society (HURPES) condemned the act of the security forces. "Instead of helping the wounded, the army stopped the Red Cross ambulance and beaten up the injured students," the statement said.
Following the incident, infuriated students have announced a one-day bandh in Chitwan on Friday.
In Pokhara, students stoned three government vehicles as a mark of protest today. They also shouted slogans against ‘monarchy’ for five minutes in various campuses.
Students in Nawalparasi have called a similar bandh tomorrow, a statement issued by student organisations stated today. They have demanded Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa to step down.
Reports from Siraha stated that the alliance of the seven student organisations blockaded the road at the district headquarters in protest against the arrest of Janak Lal Yadav, chairman of the Free Students’ Union of the local campus.
During the protest, two students were arrested by security personnel from the Campus Road, where the stir was launched.
Meanwhile, in Kathmandu, the alliance of the seven student organisations today went on sloganeering drive against what they describe as "autocratic monarchy" even as the government withdrew the charges against their leaders and set them free yesterday.Posted on: 2003-12-27 04:38

Post Your Comment

Please note that all the fields marked * are mandatory.

* Full Name

* Address

* Email Address

* Comment
[Some of the HTML tags you can use : <b>, <i>, <a>]

* Captcha

Get another CAPTCHA code