Kafle claimed that police lobbed teargas shells and opened fire to disperse demonstrators as Chure Bhawar Party cadres from Lalbandi tried to move towards the UDMF's venue. "Police had fired rubber bullets to disperse the crowd and keep the situation under control," he said adding that reports have claimed that "besides security personals, unidentified participants in the mass assembly had opened fire."
The injured are Gudu Yadav and Shival Paswan of Pipariya, Manohar Ray Yadav of Salempur, Manoj Mahato of Ishwarpur, Nagendra Thakur of Malangwa, Pappu Kumar Mahato of Aurahi, Surendra Prasad Sah of Dhangadh and Jagdev Raut of Chandranagar VDCs.
Clashes erupted at around 4 PM while Tarai-Madhes Sadbhawana Party Chairman Mahendra Ray Yadav was addressing the mass assembly. The next in turn to address the assembly was Sadbhwana Party Chairman Rajendra Mahato. Though Mahato was on his way to address the assembly, he returned from Jutpani following the clashes.
Forum Socialist Forum Nepal (FSFN) Sarlahi Chairman Ashok Yadav claimed that the local administration baton-charged and started firing even though the assembly was about to conclude peacefully.
The mass assembly was supposed to be organized on the East West Highway but was shifted Malangwa, a town two kilometers away from the Highway following warnings from the Chure Bhawar Party for not obstructing the highway. However, when the assembly started, UDMF cadres protested against the change in venue and organized the mass assembly on the highway.
To avoid clashes between UDMF and Chure Bhawar Party cadres, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force were mobilized in Hariban, Lalbandi, and Nawalpur bazaar area for restricting Chure Bhawar Party cadres from entering the mass assembly venue.
Following the police firing, irate UDMF demonstrators torched the vehicle of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Regional Office, Janakpur. The NHRC's vehicle was parked the venue.
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