Pokhara, May 29:

Locals today shut Pokhara for five hours demanding action against killers of 40-year-old Byas (Battu) Ghimire from Pokhara-3 Nadipur. All shops were closed and vehicles stopped plying from 11:00 am till 4:00 pm.

A rally led by a local Mothers’ Group (Ama Samuha) forced closure of the city and disrupted traffic at Nadipur, Bhimsen Chowk, Chipledhunga, Naya Sadak, Prithvi Chowk, Naya Bazaar, Siddhartha Chowk, Sirjana Chowk.

Traffic was disrupted due to the shutdown. Tourists were also seen walking on the street. Irate youth group vandalised a motorbike (Ga 2 Pa 1813) at Sirjana Chowk. Another mob hurled stones at the district police office. The angry protesters shouted slogans seeking immediate action against the murderers.

The protesters later calmed down after Superintendent of Police at district police office, Ramesh Kumar Bhattarai, assured them that the killers would be tracked and brought to public within two days.

Meanwhile, police have arrested two persons for their alleged involvement in the killing. However, the main culprit is at large, Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhoj Raj Ojha said.

Byas Ghimire was killed by a group of people who came on three motorbikes at 9:45 am yesterday when he was drinking water at a shop at Nadipur.