Govt to provide Rs 1 million in assistance to Tinkune victim families; Police claim 20 individuals shot

Kathmandu / April 2: Families of those losing lives in Tinkune violence would be provided Rs 1 million each. The Home Minister level meeting held at the ministry in Singha Durbar took this decision on Wednesday.

The families of journalist Suresh Rajak and another Sabin Maharjan who lost lives in the Tinkune violence would be provided the relief assistance, according to Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak’s secretariat.

Suresh Rajak, a photojournalist at Avenues Television, was found dead in a house set ablaze by the protestors, while Maharjan died in a police firing during the demonstration of the ex-king supporters on March 28.

Police claim 20 individuals shot, 746 tear gas shells launched, 250 rounds fired in protest

Nepal Police have confirmed that 20 people were shot, 746 tear gas shells were launched, and that 58 rounds of live ammunition and 192 blank rounds were fired during the pro-monarchy protests on March 28.

Speaking at a press conference organized by the police on Wednesday, Spokesperson for Nepal Police Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Dinesh Acharya stated that among the 20 individuals shot during the protest, two are women and 18 are men.

“Thirteen of the injured are currently receiving treatment in hospitals,” he said.

DIG Acharya reported that a total of 58 rounds of live ammunition were fired during the protests, along with 746 rounds of tear gas and 192 blank fires. Two shots were reportedly fired from a pistol.

Additionally, 55 Nepal Police officers and 23 Armed Police Force personnel were injured in the clashes. The police also confirmed that 53 protesters were injured as a result of the force used by the authorities.

Timing of first strikes

During the press conference, DIG Acharya said that the first tear gas shell was launched at 12:50 pm, about two hours into the protest, while the first time police had to fire a blank shot was at 2:54 pm.

“We launched the first tear gas shell at 12:50 pm to disperse the crowd of around 3,000 people led by Durga Prasai,” he said, “However, he attempted to break through the police cordon instead of going towards the event site, agitating the crowd further.”

‘Shots fired to control agitated crowd’

DIG Acharya also clarified that they had to resort to firing shots to control an agitated crowd during a protest.

“An agitated crowd caused significant damage to many houses. To bring the situation under control, we were forced to fire shots,” said DIG Acharya. He claimed that the incident occurred due to the aggressive behavior of the protesters, and despite the police adopting a policy of using minimal force, the situation deteriorated.

The protest at Tinkune was organized by a pro-monarchy group. According to the police, two people lost their lives in the incident, and a significant amount of property was destroyed.

Police have stated that further investigations into the incident are ongoing.