Dhangadhi, May 28:

Three persons were killed when police opened firing at a mob that tried to vandalise the Kailali district administration office today. Five others were injured in the incident.

The DAO clamped indefinite curfew in eight wards of Dhangadhi Municipality after the situation went out of control.

The police opened fire after the irate mob entered the DAO, shouting slogans, in the afternoon. Ram Prit Rana of the Urma VDC-1 and Jagram Chaudhary and Raj Kumar Chaudhary of Ward No 3 of the same VDC died in police shooting.

Jit Bahadur Chaudhary and Anil Chaudhary of Urma-3; Sri Ram Chaudhary of Urma-1; Gopal Chaudhary of Urma-6 and Bandhu Ram Chaudhary of Urma-9 were critically injured in the incident. They have been sent to Nepalgunj for treatment, police said.

Today’s incident occurred a few days after a clash between two groups of villagers over the ownership of Mahadeva Lake located at Ward No 4 of Urma VDC. While residents of Rampur, Ward No 4 of the VDC, claim that the lake belonged to them as their ancestors built it nearly a hundred years ago, the residents of Ward No 8 also claim ownership of the lake. Both the sides approached the DAO over the issue, but a decision on it is pending.

Journalists were also dragged into the controversy after a group of villagers led by Maoists thrashed journalist Lucky Chaudhary on Monday for covering the news of the controversy in two local newspapers. He was beaten up again on Tuesday by a group, including local Maoist cadres Ram Samajh Chaudhary and Fulram Chaudhary, when he reached the DAO to lodge

a complaint against the attackers. Journalists had organised a sit-in in the district administration office throughout Tuesday night demanding action against the guilty of attack on the journalist.

Issuing a press statement today, NHRC’s office in Dhangadhi urged all to observe restraint.