The irate people also retaliated with CPN-M activists trying to forcibly shutdown the market places and to obstruct vehicular movement as a part of Tamsaling area strike called by their party. [break]
Opposing the government´s move to press ahead with the Constituent Assembly election slated for November 19, the CPN-M had announced shutdown in ten districts in the region where indigenous Tamang community are in majority.
The locals at Tindobato in Banepa drove away CPN-M agitators, who were trying to impose shut down in the market place.
After the people started defying the strike, the CPN-M activists tried to attack the locals. However, the police intervention averted any untoward incident. The police briefly rounded up 16 Maoist activists, including Central Member Chudamani Gautam.
“We arrested the protestors after we learnt that they were planning to attack the locals who were actively defying the strike with iron rods and sticks,” said Ashwin Kumar Giri, a police inspector in Banepa.
The police also seized many iron rods hidden by the bandh enforcers at a vegetable market in Banepa.
Similarly, the locals of Charikot thrashed CPN-M activists who were forcibly trying to shut down the market places.
According to eyewitnesses, hoteliers and local businessmen retaliated after the agitators tried to shut down a hotel at Satdobato Chowk in Chariot.
The businessmen also thrashed Prem Darnal, district secretary of the CPN-Maoist, who had been leading the protest rally to impose the shutdown.
The Police had intervened to take the situation under control. After public became violent against the Maoists, the police took five activists including Darnal under control to protect them from the locals.
“We took them under control after public started attacking the agitators. Later we released them on the condition that they would not resort to forced shutdown,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police, Suresh Kumar Kafle. DSP Kafle also informed that the market place remained open but public transportation came to a halt due to the strike.
Normal life across the strike affected districts in the mid hill region was affected to the shutdown.
Maoists torch a bus with passengers inside
Infuriated with the local residents who defied their strike, CPN-Maoist activists torched a public bus (BA 2 KHA 5672) bound to Melamchi from Kathmandu on Sunday morning at Dhulikhel without even letting the passengers to get off.
“Four people stopped our bus at Mirabel Chowk, saying that they wanted to go to Melamchi. But they started to sprinkle petrol as soon as they got inside the bus and set it alight in no time,” said Mangal Shrestha, the bus helper.
According to eyewitnesses, the vandalizers even gave no time for the commuters to get off from the bus before setting it on fire.
“We had to rush out of the bus to save ourselves. Even some passengers jumped off from the windows,” one of the commuter said.
According to Shrestha, Rs 30,000 he had kept in the lock box in the bus was also burnt in the incident.
Shresthta also informed that the arsonists were youths in their early- and mid- twenties.
CPN-M activists also attacked vehicles belonging to the press as well as media person in the course of the strike. The agitators also pelted stone at Rajdhani daily scribe Keshav Raj Pouel in Banepa.
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