Durga Devi, mother of raped and murdered 13-year-old Nirmala Pant, returned to Kanchanpur leaving her ailing husband in Kathmandu.

She immediately joined the anti-government protests launched separately by the Pant family and woman rights activists on Tuesday.

Durga Devi, who arrived in Mahendranagar on Monday, attended the indefinite sit-in started by the Pant family outside the District Administration Office (DAO) since November 11. She also joined the separate protest staged by the woman rights activists in front of the DAO.

Kanchanpur-based rights activists started a separate sit-in from Monday to exert pressure on the government to arrest the culprits involved in the rape and murder of Nirmala four months ago.

The protesting rights activists slept on the road in front of the DAO for two hours with blindfolds on their eyes, black bands and displayed posters that had Nirmala’s photo.

Service seekers could not enter to the DAO due to the demonstrations.

Protests against the rape and murder of the teenage girl are going on in several places in the country, as the authorities are still clueless about the culprits involved in the gruesome murder.

In Nawalparasi, students demonstrated in Kawasoti on Tuesday. They obstructed vehicular movement along the East-West Highway. Students from various educational institutions joined protests demanding justice for Nirmala.