KAVRE, JUNE 26

A group of around 50 armed robbers looted Bodhichitta seeds worth millions at Nagbeli of Roshi Rural Municipality-5, Kavre, last night.

Police said that the group of armed people had looted the seeds from a Bodhichitta tree belonging to Bir Bahaduar Tamang. The miscreants had attacked five youths deployed for the security of the Bodhichitta tree and injured them.

Of the injured, four are being treated at Dhulikhel Hospital.

Of them, the condition of two is critical, according to local Bodhichitta trader Samip Tripathi.

Four persons, including Samip Tripathi had already bought Bodhichitta seeds from Bir Bahadur at the cost of Rs nine million.

Kavre police said that the looters had been absconding with Bodhichitta seeds. “A team of security forces led by DSP Kumar Bikram Thapa has been deployed to search for the absconding looters,” said CDO Shrawan Kumar Timilsina.

CDO Timilsina said that his office had been coordinating with Sindhuli and Makawanpur districts for the search of looters.

According to CDO Timilsina, the thieves had obstructed the road leading to the tree by putting up a ‘danger’ sign on the road and placed objects that resembled explosives.

Trees were also felled to obstruct the road.

A bomb disposal team was mobilised in and around the incident site this morning. Police have kept the incident site under their control.

Tripathi said that armed people had damaged CCTV cameras installed in the houses of Bir Bahadur Tamang and Dil Bahadur Tamang and looted Bodhichitta beads. Shyam Tamang, 38, Jit Bahadur Tamang, 30, Sekhar Tamang, 24, Jit Bahadur Tamang, 40 and Wangduk Tamang, 20, were injured in the incident, said Tripathi.

Wangduk, who went missing after looting, came into contact this morning. He has sustained minor injuries in the incident. Locals said that the armed group had opened one round of fire before they made away with Bodhichitta seeds.

Looters had damaged window panes and doors of the houses belonging to Bir Bahadur and Dil Bahadur as well.

Police have recovered a bullet from the incident site. A preliminary police investigation showed that the group armed with modern weapons, including pistols and knives, had looted the Bodhichitta seeds.

A joint team of APF and Nepal police personnel have been deployed to the incident site, said CDO Timilsina.

Meanwhile, a local quoting Bir Bahadur Tamang said that some youths had threatened to kill him if Bodhichitta seeds were not sold to them.

Locals surmised that the same group of youths might have made off with precious Bodhichitta seeds.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on June 27, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.