Simara on edge as Gen Z youths refuse to back down
Title: Simara on edge as Gen Z youths refuse to back down
URL Source: Simara on edge as Gen Z youths refuse to back down
Simara on edge as Gen Z youths refuse to back down
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Four protesters and six police personnel were injured during clashes Thursday. Youths say they won’t sit for talks until accused UML cadres are detained.
Tyres burn on the road as Gen Z youths stage protest in Simara for a second day on Thursday demanding arrests of UML cadres they have accused of assaulting them on Wednesday. A curfew imposed by the administration had little effect.Post Photo
Laxmi Sah
Bara
Simara, an emerging city in Bara district of Madhesh Province, has been struggling to return to normalcy following two days of violent clashes. The district administration clamped a curfew in Simara and its vicinity on Thursday, for the second consecutive day, fearing any untoward incidents.
Tensions flared up in the Simara area on Thursday since youths identifying themselves as Gen Z returned to the streets a day after clashes with CPN-UML cadres. Protesters gathered at Simara Chowk from 11am. Police used force to disperse them, and authorities later imposed a curfew to bring the situation under control.
Bara’s Assistant Chief District Officer Chhabi Raman Subedi said the curfew was enforced from 12.45pm to 8pm.
Gen Z protesters accused police of failing to arrest individuals named in their complaint over Wednesday’s clash. Police have since detained two local officials elected on the CPN-UML ticket. Chief District Officer Dharmendra Kumar Mishra said Ward Chair Dhan Bahadur Shrestha of ward 2 of Jeetpur-Simara Sub-metropolitan City and Ward Chair Kaimudin Ansari of ward 6 were arrested.
Six Gen Z supporters were injured on Wednesday. The group lodged a complaint against six UML cadres over the confrontation at Simara Chowk. Gen Z district coordinator Samrat Upadhyaya said they resumed protests because some of the accused had not been detained.
The clash between Gen Z youth and UML supporters had left the area tense throughout Wednesday. Police fired teargas canisters after the confrontation escalated near Simara Airport, forcing the airport to halt operations.
The UML had been preparing for days to hold its ‘Youth Awakening Campaign’ in Parwanipur on Wednesday. UML General Secretary Shankar Pokharel and politburo member Mahesh Basnet were scheduled to fly from Kathmandu and land at Simara around 10:30am, but neither made the trip after Simara airport was closed.
On Tuesday evening, Upadhyaya posted on Facebook, urging young people to demonstrate in Simara against what he called the ‘outgoing murderous government’. His post, widely shared in the district, sparked concern among security agencies.
By around 10 am Wednesday, 100-150 youths gathered at Simara Chowk, many of them reportedly planning to protest the arrival of Basnet, who in the past has faced strong criticism over his aggressive political style.
Meanwhile, Chief District Officer Dharmendra Kumar Mishra called Gen Z protesters in Simara for talks on Thursday. According to Bhattarai, a meeting of the District Security Committee decided to invite the protesters to the District Administration Office in Kalaiya for talks.
However, Gen Z district coordinator Upadhyaya said that talks would take place only after the individuals involved in attacking Gen Z youths were arrested. “Our protest and negotiations will move ahead simultaneously,” Upadhyaya said. “Unless six individuals named in the complaint are arrested and action taken, demonstrations will continue.” He also accused police of falsely claiming that two suspects had been arrested, saying they had voluntarily appeared at the police office. “We don’t want anyone’s blood to be spilled,” he added.
Meanwhile, the District Police Office issued a statement confirming that investigation has begun against the two people in custody—Shrestha, chair of ward 2, and Ansari of ward 6.
As protests continued for a second day on Thursday, the administration reimposed a curfew from 12:45 pm to 8 pm. Demonstrators defied the order, leading to clashes in which four protesters and six police personnel were injured. Police said six rounds of tear gas and two warning shots were fired after the crowd began pelting stones.
The situation gradually returned to normal as protesters halted their demonstrations and cleared the road after 4:30 pm, allowing traffic to resume along the Birgunj-Pathlaiya road section. Simara Bazar returned to normal, with people moving about as usual. The impact of the curfew in the market area was minimal. However, protesters have warned that they would resume demonstrations on Friday unless the individuals named in their complaints are arrested. A heavy security presence remains throughout Simara.
According to Manish Sapkota, spokesperson for the Gen Z Jitpur-Simara Municipal Committee, the group has decided not to sit for talks with the administration until the arrest of Arbind Sah and Arif Khan, members of the UML-affiliated youth wing in Simara. “We are positive about negotiations. But we will not attend talks until the main individuals responsible for the beatings are arrested. If they are taken into custody, we may go for talks after 10 am on Friday. We stopped our protest at 4:30 pm,” said Sapkota. He emphasised that during the demonstrations, they avoided any destruction, arson, or other undesirable actions.
Pokhrel tells party he’ll challenge Oli for UML chair
Title: Pokhrel tells party he’ll challenge Oli for UML chair
URL Source: Pokhrel tells party he’ll challenge Oli for UML chair
Pokhrel tells party he’ll challenge Oli for UML chair
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The senior party vice-chair has former President Bidya Bhandari’s backing to unseat Oli, who intends to stay put.
Ishwar Pokhrel and KP Sharma Oli Post file photos
Purushottam Poudel
Kathmandu
CPN-UML Senior Vice-chair Ishwar Pokhrel has formally announced his claim to the party chair.
The UML convened a Secretariat meeting at the party office in Chyasal on Thursday, for the first time since the Gen Z uprising in early September. The party office was set on fire during the protest.
The party’s 50th Secretariat meeting discussed preparations for the party’s 11th National General Convention to be held on December 13-15, as well as the demonstrations planned for November 22 in Kathmandu among other issues.
The UML has been saying that it will exert pressure both through the streets and the court for the reinstatement of the House of Representatives which was dissolved days after the September 8–9 revolt ousted then prime minister KP Sharma Oli. During the protests, the ruling party saw its offices vandalised and burnt, notably the Chayasal head office.
Earlier, Pokhrel had expressed his intention to contest the top party leadership. Besides declaring it at various forums, he also disclosed his plan to the Post earlier this month. However, Pokhrel had not presented it to a party meeting so far.
Pokharel told the Secretariat meeting that he is ready to contest, a UML leader told the Post. “He also urged Oli to step aside and take up an advisory role in the party, like its guardian,” the secretariat member said.
Deputy General Secretary Pradeep Gyawali, briefing the media after the meeting, said that party chair Oli takes the challenge as a natural process of the general convention.
Oli expressed his concern that leaders defeated at previous general conventions had created rifts within the party, and that such a situation should not be repeated this time, Gyawali said.
Oli claimed that Madhav Kumar Nepal triggered divisions in the party after losing the chair at the ninth general convention in 2014. Bhim Rawal, he accused, played a similar role after being defeated for the top post at the tenth convention in 2021.
The UML had already decided to reduce its 19-member secretariat to 15 members, a decision that was endorsed by the party’s second National Statute Convention concluded on September 7.
With this decision, the position of senior vice-chair will also cease to exist after the upcoming general convention. The decision is also said to have goaded the senior vice-chair, Pokhrel, to lay his claim to the top UML position.
In the UML secretariat, Secretary Top Bahadur Rayamajhi remains suspended as he is in judicial custody in connection with the fake Bhutanese refugee scam.
Among the remaining 18 members, vice-chairs Yubaraj Gyawali, Asta Laxmi Shakya, Surendra Pandey, and Bishnu Paudel, along with secretaries Yogesh Bhattarai and Gokarna Bista, reportedly back Pokhrel.
According to a secretariat member, intensive discussions are underway with other leaders to garner support for Pokhrel.
Apart from Vice-chair Guru Ghimire, General Secretary Shankar Pokhrel, and deputy general secretaries Pradeep Gyawali and Bishnu Rimal, other secretariat members are expected to join Pokhrel’s panel, a party office-bearer said.
It’s unclear who will contest the post of general secretary on Pokhrel’s side. The group awaits the decision of Deputy General Secretary Prithvi Subba Gurung on whom to back for the top party role.
Gurung is said to prefer contesting for general secretary from Oli’s side, but within that panel, the current general secretary, Shankar Pokhrel, seeks to continue for another term. If Shankar Pokhrel gives up the position, Pradeep Gyawali is likely to be the panel’s candidate for the post, which would reduce Gurung’s chances.
In such a situation, leaders say that if Gurung joins the Pokhrel panel, they are prepared to offer him the general secretary candidacy. “There is no problem over other posts in our panel. If Gurung does not join, we will finalise the general secretary and other positions as the general convention approaches,” a leader said on the condition of anonymity to discuss the developments.
As head of the government at the time of Gen Z protest, Oli was the main target of the youths who were on the streets against corruption. In the ensuing violence, 76 people lost their lives in total.
On the first day of protests, 19 unarmed demonstrators, mostly young students, were killed. Violent demonstrations spread across the country the following day. As the situation escalated, Oli was forced to flee the prime minister’s residence and was evacuated by an army helicopter.
However, as the movement gradually subsided, Oli began to sharply criticise the Gen Z protests.
The Gen Z movement raised questions about Oli’s political relevance, yet he is preparing to continue on the party chair. He secured legal grounds for his re-election through the party’s Second National Statute Convention, which concluded on September 7, a day before the Gen Z protests shook the country.
Earlier, there had been an internal debate in the UML over whether to remove the age limit of 70 years and the two-term restriction for the leadership. However, the statute convention removed both checks, clearing the way for Oli’s continued leadership, as the septuagenarian leader now serves his second term as party chief.
Similarly, former President Bidya Devi Bhandari, who had renewed her party membership and expressed interest in returning to the party’s fold, has had her membership revoked, apparently at Oli’s behest. Bhandari, who is in her early sixties, had resigned as UML vice-chair after being elected the country’s President in 2015.
Even before the Gen Z movement, questions were raised about Oli’s leadership, not only outside the party but also within. However, no leader had openly challenged him. As a result, while there was some doubt about Oli’s reelection, the path ahead had seemed relatively smooth.
Now, a section of UML leaders is uniting under Senior Vice-chair Pokhrel to counter Oli.
Second-rung UML leaders chose Pokhrel as a candidate for the party chair after Oli and his faction denied former President Bhandari party membership, despite her announcement to return to the party.
According to party insiders, Bhandari is backing Pokhrel to replace Oli. Party leaders who are considering forming an alternative panel to challenge Oli said that next week, Pokhrel is preparing to formally announce his candidacy for party chair with Bhandari by his side.
When Bhandari announced in June her plan to rejoin party politics, several UML leaders including Pokhrel had supported her. They aimed to use her return to challenge Oli’s leadership. However, the party’s central committee later decided that, on moral grounds, a former President could not be granted party membership, effectively denying Bhandari any role in the party.
Nepal sets up long-awaited transitional justice fund
Title: Nepal sets up long-awaited transitional justice fund
URL Source: Nepal sets up long-awaited transitional justice fund
Nepal sets up long-awaited transitional justice fund
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The relief and reparations for insurgency victims will be financed through multiple sectors.
Binod Ghimire
Kathmandu
The long-talked-about transitional justice fund has come into existence after the government endorsed and published its regulations in the Nepal Gazette.
Clause 23 A of the Act, revised in August last year, envisions a fund which would be spent to conclude the long-pending process. The fund, however, had not materialised in the absence of regulations to guide its setup and the mobilisation of contributions.
“The fund has come into being,” said Man Bahadur Aryal, joint secretary at the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary. “A separate account to deposit the money to the fund will be in place in a day or two.”
Just two days after the fund was created, the government decided to accept a $2.1 million donation from the Swiss government. A Cabinet meeting on Tuesday decided to accept the money to be spent in the transitional justice process.
Even as the Swiss Embassy in Nepal had been willing to contribute to the fund months ago, delay in its formation held the donation back. Over a year after an amendment to the Enforced Disappearances Enquiry, Truth and Reconciliation Commission Act, the fund formally came into existence on Sunday with the publication of the regulations in the Nepal Gazette.
The Act envisions all tiers of government and parties to the armed conflict contributing to the fund. It also expects contributions from Nepali citizens and organisations as well as foreign governments, organisations and international agencies. The Pushpa Kamal Dahal government had allocated Rs1 billion to the fund in the fiscal year 2024-25.However, the allocation was frozen due to the failure to set up the fund.
The current national budget also has earmarked the same amount for the fund. Officials say Rs1 billion sanctioned by the government will soon be transferred to the fund.
A rough estimation by the law ministry last year showed Nepal would need at least Rs40 billion to conclude the peace process. During a meeting with representatives of various bilateral and multilateral partners and the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office in Kathmandu last year, the government had urged them to contribute to the fund. While most missions and the UN pledged technical and logistical support, none except the Swiss Embassy committed to monetary contribution.
The government is optimistic about receiving donations from different agencies once the process to investigate the insurgency-era crimes and deliver justice takes its course.
The fund’s money, according to the regulations, will be spent only on interim relief, relief and reparation packages to the victims of the Maoist insurgency (1996-2006).
A seven-member panel led by the law minister will decide the mobilisation of the fund. The panel will also have two representatives from conflict victims and one from among human rights activists or legal experts.
Officials at the transitional justice commissions say they have received assurances from different diplomatic missions and the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office for technical support and capacity building for staffers of the two commissions—Transitional Justice Commission (TRC), and the Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons (CIEDP). Officials from the resident coordinator’s office had held meetings with the TRC officials where they proposed the support.
“The fund has finally been set up, but we also need TRC’s regulations, adequate staff, and a proper working place to expedite our work. We have received a positive response from the government. We hope it happens soon,” said Tika Dhakal, a member at the TRC.
The TRC alone has received close to 80,000 complaints while the CIEDP has 2,500 cases to investigate. However, six months since their formation, the two commissions have yet to start probing these cases.
The Act sets four years to complete the task. They effectively have three and a half years to investigate all the complaints, and recommend prosecution and reparation as deemed necessary.
India gifts 70-metre modular bridge to Nepal
Title: India gifts 70-metre modular bridge to Nepal
URL Source: India gifts 70-metre modular bridge to Nepal
India gifts 70-metre modular bridge to Nepal
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The ten Bailey bridges worth more than Rs730 million are being provided on grant basis by India, stated the embassy.
Post Report
Kathmandu
Indian Ambassador to Nepal Naveen Srivastava handed over the complete set of a 70-metre modular bridge and specialised launching tools to Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Kulman Ghishing on Thursday in Hetauda.
“The government of India is committed to delivering a total of ten such 70-meter and higher span bridges requested by the government of Nepal after the devastating rains in October 2025, which affected eastern Nepal,” said the Indian Embassy in a statement.
The ten Bailey bridges worth more than Rs730 million are being provided on grant basis by India, stated the embassy.
The modular or prefabricated bridge handed over on Thursday will be sent immediately for installation to Ramechhap, where road connectivity has been affected after the heavy rains in October 2025. In the aftermath of the floods and landslides of September 2024, the government of India supplied 10 prefabricated steel bridges worth Rs410 million, of which four have already been installed, added the embassy.
Minister Ghising expressed gratitude for India’s sustained and substantial assistance. He also noted that the quick-to-assemble nature of these bridges and the provision of launching tools are crucial for fast-tracking emergency reconstruction. He also assured that the bridge would be quickly operationalised.
During the event, Srivastava said that the supply of the modular bridges is a powerful testament to the enduring bonds of friendship that define the India-Nepal relationship and a reaffirmation of the government of India’s policy of extending all possible support for Nepal’s infrastructure development and post-disaster reconstruction efforts.
Share Your Thoughts
- What impact do you think the Simara clashes will have on local stability and the wider election environment?
- Do intra-party challenges within the CPN-UML change how parties will campaign ahead of March 5, 2026?
- How important is international support — like Switzerland’s transitional justice donation or India’s modular bridges — for Nepal’s recovery and governance processes?
- What steps should local authorities take to de-escalate street-level confrontations while ensuring accountability?
- How can transitional justice processes balance victims’ demands with timely investigations?