Arya manhandled Bhattarai after a dispute over providing travel expenses to two students who recently won a speech contest in Dharan.
Bhattarai said Arya slapped him for a flimsy reason as the latter had issues with him since long. But Arya said he resorted to violence after Bhattarai demanded documentary evidence for releasing the travel expenses. He also accused Bhattarai of taking unilateral decisions on students´ issues.
“I slapped him twice in the beginning. I don´t remember how many times I slapped him after he started hurling verbal abuse on me,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Maoist-affiliated All Nepal Teachers´ Organization (ANTO) closed down all educational institutions in the eastern region on Monday, to protest the attack on Laxmi Onchhongbo, deputy coordinator of ANTO´s eastern bureau by Youth Force cadres led by Rupesh Limbu last Friday. Onchhongbo was shot at by the group.
A majority of educational institutions in Jhapa, Morang, Sunsari, Tehrathum and Dhankuta remained closed.
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