National
Protests against boundary revision continue
Butwal, the flashpoint of the ongoing protests against the proposal to split Province 5, remained shut on the fourth consecutive day on Saturday.Butwal, the flashpoint of the ongoing protests against the proposal to split Province 5, remained shut on the fourth consecutive day on Saturday.
Civil society leaders, human rights activists, legal practitioners, students and locals took to the streets.
They demonstrated at major thoroughfares in the town to protest against the government’s plan to break the Hill districts off Province 5. Transportation came to a halt while marketplaces remained shut due to the protest.
The protesters, who clashed with police, torched an effigy of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal in Pushpalal Park.
Protests against the constitution amendment bill registered in the Parliament Secretariat continued in districts including Gulmi, Arghakhanchi, Pyuthan and Dang.
Protesters, who demonstrated in Tamghas since early morning, seized 11 motorcycles for defying the banda enforced for the past four days. Student wings of several political parties intensified the protest on Saturday.
In Arghakhanchi, the protesters lifted the shutdown after 3pm. Nepali Congress district President Bishnu Prasad Khanal, who coordinates the joint struggle committee, said the banda would be enforced in the district from 11am to 5pm on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the Tharu community at Danda in Nawalparasi district staged a protest demanding realignment of Nawalpur, currently in Province 4, with Province 5. Under the banner of the Tharu Kalyankarini Sabha, the protesters obstructed the East-West Highway for an hour.