SURKHET, August 13

As the agitation that began demanding an intact mid-west turned violent three days ago, National Human Rights Commission has started field investigation in Surkhet from on Thursday.

A team from the human rights watchdog led by commission member Mohana Ansari inquired about the incident with the local administration office, Nepal Police and representatives of civil society in Birendranagar on Thursday.

Ansari said that the agitation that followed the delineation of boundaries of the federal set up was sentimental. People have the right to protest peacefully, while the state doesn’t have the right to curtail such kind of agitation by using force. It was a disappointing incident. While looking for our rights, we also need to think about whether we have ignored others,” she said.

The team met the families of the deceased and the injured and took necessary information.

The kin of the deceased have not accepted the body yet, according to the local administration. “Getting the final rites performed is also the right of the deceased. Hence, a conducive atmosphere to receive the bodies should be created at the earliest, about which the local administration must be more serious,” she said.

Krishna Bahadur Hamal, chairman of Surkhet chapter of Bar Association, said the government should take responsibility for the death of citizens during scuffle. He further demanded that the deceased be declared martyrs and free treatment and compensation for the injured. Police personnel involved in the shooting and the administration are solely responsible for the incident, he added.

However, no untoward incident was reported during the demonstration on Thursday.

At least three persons were killed during the protest on Monday. As the leaders of the district took the initiative of managing the protest after the shooting incident, it remained peaceful on Thursday. Some participants of a joint gathering of Nepali Congress and UCPN-Maoist were attacked by intruders. Police held three persons for involvement in the assault. Local administration withdrew the curfew order clamped down three days ago as the situation turned normal in the district.

The kin of the deceased have been refusing to accept the bodies until they are declared martyrs and they are provided proper compensation. The administration, on the other hand, has urged local leaders to create conducive atmosphere for receiving the bodies.