Curfew imposed in Nepal's Bara district after clash between Gen Z youths, CPN-UML cadres

Kathmandu: A curfew was imposed in parts of Nepal's Bara district bordering India on Wednesday after Gen Z youths clashed with cadres of CPN-UML, the party of ousted prime minister K P Sharma Oli, officials said.

The Bara district administration office said the curfew would remain in force from 12:30 pm to 8:00 pm within a 500-metre radius of Simara Airport after hundreds of Gen Z youths gathered there shouting slogans against the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist).

The clash erupted when a Buddha Air flight carrying CPN-UML general secretary Shankar Pokharel and party youth leader Mahesh Basnet was to take off from Kathmandu for Simara, where they were scheduled to address an anti-government rally, police said.

As news of the CPN-UML leaders flying to Simara spread, Gen Z protesters gathered at the airport to oppose their arrival, triggering a clash with local CPN-UML cadres.

Authorities subsequently imposed the curfew around the airport area to bring the situation under control.

Following the incident, Buddha Airlines cancelled all its domestic flights from Kathmandu to Simara for the day, including the one carrying the two CPN-UML leaders, who returned home after the disruption.

The CPN-UML has been organising protest programmes across Nepal demanding reinstatement of the House of Representatives, which dissolved on September 12 following the Gen Z movement that toppled the Oli-led government.

Gen Z activists have also sought action over the alleged mass killing of protesters on September 9 during demonstrations against corruption and a proposed social media ban under the then Oli administration.