NEPALGUNJ, March 14: Police shot dead two Tharu protestors who were among those violating curfew at Lathuwa of Sisniya, Dang district at 1 a.m. Saturday. [break]
Eight policemen and at least three protestors were wounded in the clash at Lathuwa, about 12 kilometers in the east from Lamahi on the East-West Highway, which started when the protestors tried to prevent the police from escorting the stranded passengers, Deputy Superintendent of Police Tikaram Sijuwal said.
Meanwhile, the Dang district administration has extended the curfew for an indefinite period at Lathuwa, Bhalubang and Lamahi. The curfew was to end at 5 a.m. Saturday.
People are gathering in big numbers at Lathuwa where the clash occurred, Chief District Officer Rishi Ram Dhakal. "The situation is getting tense but not yet out of control," he said. Many passengers are stranded at Lathuwa, he added.
Those dead have been identified at Prakash Chaudhari of Sisniya and Ram Prasad Chaudhari of Lathuwa.
The wounded protestors – Prabin Chaudhari, Janjir Chaudhari and Pradip Chaudhari – have been brought to Nepalgunj Hospital for treatment, the DSP said. Prabin who has been hit on the stomach is in serious condition.
During the clash, the protestors pelted stones on a police truck – Na 1 Ga 651 – and a passenger bus, Na 2 Kha 2990.
"The police resorted to firing when the protestors started pelting stones on the escorting vehicle and about one and a half dozen passenger buses at a place where curfew had been imposed," DSP Sijuwal said.
The Dang district administration, on Friday, had imposed the 8 p.m. to 5 p.m. curfew in the 79-km highway within the district in order to escort the stranded passengers.
The Tharu groups have been protesting for about two weeks demanding that their community be recognized as a separate group in the constitution. They have vehemently opposed their categorization as a Madhesi group.
Two rounds of formal talks between Tharu organizations and the government in the capital have failed to break the deadlock.
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