Dhangadhi, February 2:

Maoists have carried out bomb blasts at several places across the country.

In Tikapur the Maoists detonated bombs at houses of two mayoral candidates of Tikapur municipality and looted goods worth of lakhs of rupees last night.

Group of around two dozen Maoists had carried out around 25 blasts in the area, security sources said.

House of mayoral candidate of Tikapur municipality, Kumar Bahadur Shah, was destroyed completely in the Maoist blast.

The Maoists had forced all family members out of the house before carrying out the blast, security sources said.

House of another mayoral candidate, Bishnu Devi Rawal, was also destroyed in Maoists’ bomb blast. Maoists looted Rs 45,000 cash, television and other valuables from Rawal’s house, security source said.

There were no human casualties in the blast. Both the candidates have been staying at Base Camp of armed police force at Tikapur.

Likewise, Maoists and security forces clashed for some time last night at Dhangadhi. The Maoists had attacked a Royal Nepalese Army vehicle from the roofs of houses at the Campus Road.

No human casualty was reported.

In Pokhara, one civilian was injured when a land mine planted by Maoists targeting the Royal Nepalese Army van went off at Lekhnath Municipality of Kaski this morning.

The injured has been identified only as a peon of the nearby New Diamond School.

The explosion occurred at around 8:50 am at Nahar Chowk and the RNA van escaped the blast by a distance of 10 meters, locals said.

In Birgunj, Maoists detonated a powerful bomb at the house of a relative of the mayoral candidate of Birgunj sub metropolis last night.

The house belongs to Hamid Ansari, uncle of mayoral candidate from Rastrabadi Janata Dal, Sabbah Ansari, District Police Office said. The Maoists set off the bomb in the veranda outside of the one-storied house that adjoins the house of candidate Sabbah Ansari. The blast didn’t cause any human casualty, police said.

A report from Kapilvastu said Maoists detonated a bomb at the house of newly elected Mayor of Kapilvastu municipality, Ram Das Gupta, yesterday.

RNA personnel from the Taulihawa barrack of Royal Nepalese Army, located some 200 meters east from the incident site, had fired shots in the air after hearing the blast.

Two rooms and veranda of the house were completely damaged from the blast.

Mayor Gupta said, “I wasn’t home when the incident took place.”

Gupta had been staying at the house of his nephew, Assistant minister for Physical Planning and Construction, Brijesh Kumar Gupta since his nomination in the municipal polls.

Meanwhile, a report from the Rastriya Samachar Samiti said Maoists exploded a powerful bomb in the house of the candidate of mayor of Bidur Municipality, Kaman Singh Lama, last night.

Family sources said, three Maoists came on bicycles, asked the members to come out of the house, and set off the bomb and ran away.