Nepalgunj, May 20

A group of locals took the quarantine set up at Adarsha Secondary School in Narainapur Rural Municipality, Banke, under control today morning.

The people, who had earlier, tried to stop security personnel from taking quarantined people to the isolation ward in Nepalgunj, captured the quarantine centre.

Narainapur Rural Municipality Chair Istiyak Ahmad Sah said a group of people led by Ishak Jolaha had captured the quarantine facility and halted food distribution. Sah claimed that the opposition party had instigated locals to seize the quarantine.

Police said a group of people led by Ishak Ahmad Jolaha had tried to stop the authorities from taking quarantined people to the isolation ward in Nepalgunj.

Likewise, Nibaru Sesh and Babu Darji, who were kept in the quarantine centre of Jayakishan Secondary School, Narainapur, had spread a rumour that quarantined people would be killed and had thus caused mayhem at the quarantine centre.

Eyewitness Ramjit Teli said that Nibaru Sesh had called people from the village to capture the quarantine centre.

Banke District Coordination Committee Coordinator Ajay Kumar Shreewastab said that they were preparing to take action against people who had spread the rumour that quarantined people would be taken to Nepalgunj and shot to death.

A large number of security personnel have been deployed in Narainapur area after the quarantine centre was  seized and locals went on a rampage. “A large number of Nepal Police, Nepali Army and Armed Police Force have been mobilised in Narainapur area,” said SP Bir Bahadur Oli.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on May 21, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.