Amid communal violence, indefinite curfew imposed in Nepal town bordering India

Kathmandu: Authorities have imposed an ongoing curfew in Nepalgunj, a town in Nepal's border region with India, after at least 22 people were hurt during communal clash, according to officials on Wednesday.

In Nepalgunj, roughly 400 kilometres west of Kathmandu, a communal clash sparked by a social media post resulted in at least 22 injuries, including 5 to security forces.

Following the clash, the Banke district administration imposed an indefinite curfew starting at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday in the town, which borders Uttar Pradesh.

Banke's Chief District Officer Bipin Acharya said the curfew has been intensified, and people entering Nepal via the Jamunaha point are being escorted to their destinations.

The district administration will hold an all-party meeting at the earliest to settle down the situation in the town, he said.

According to Jamunaha's police beat's senior superintendent of police Min Bahadur Bista so far 1,500 Nepalis who arrived from India have been safely escorted up to the point from where they could reach their destinations safely.

Nepalis are returning home from various places in India including Shimla, Kalapahad, and Delhi via the Jamunaha point in the district, he said.

Meanwhile, the local administration has urged all to cooperate to ease the situation and not to upload any content capable of jeopardising social and religious harmony on social sites.

Political parties based in Nepalgunj, religious leaders, civil society activists and intellectuals have appealed to all to restore peace and harmony in the town.

With PTI inputs