Nepali police shot and killed a protester Sunday after fresh clashes erupted in the country’s southern plains, deepening the crisis over a new constitution, an official said.
Police opened fire when a crowd of about 1,500 demonstrators started throwing stones and bottles at the district police office in the town of Gaur in Rautahat district, 100 km south of Katmandu.
“The police fired in self-defense after the protesters became aggressive, and unfortunately one (protester) was killed,” district chief Narahari Baral told AFP.
Baral said the protest in Gaur had escalated since Saturday and a curfew had now been imposed in the area.
More than 50 people have been killed in clashes between police and people protesting against the constitution, which was introduced in September after a deadly earthquake pushed warring political parties to reach an agreement.
Demonstrators from the Madhesi ethnic minority, mainly from the southern plains, have been blockading the main Birgunj border crossing with India, saying the constitution leaves them politically marginalized.
Nepal is heavily dependent on India for fuel and other supplies, but little cargo has crossed the border from India since the protests broke out.
The disruption has led to severe shortages in landlocked Nepal and prompted the government to accuse New Delhi — which has criticized the new constitution — of imposing an “unofficial blockade.”
New Delhi has denied the charge and urged Nepal to hold talks with the Madhesis, who share close cultural, linguistic and family links with Indians living across the border.
But several rounds of talks between the government and the protesting parties have failed to yield any solutions.
Source: Arab News