KATHMANDU: Nepal Police has justified its use of force, including firing gunshots, during the violent royalist protests in Kathmandu’s Tinkune area on March 28.
At a press conference on Wednesday, police spokesperson DIG Dinesh Kumar Acharya stated that police had to fire shots to control the aggressive mob.
According to DIG Acharya, police first fired tear gas at 12:50 PM when protesters attempted to breach a restricted area near the Parliament building. Later, as the demonstrators became more violent and marched toward Tribhuvan International Airport, police fired the first gunshot at 2:54 PM.
Acharya blamed royalist leader Durga Prasai for inciting the crowd and attempting to lead the protesters into restricted zones, which escalated tensions.
During the clashes, 20 people—2 women and 18 men—were shot, Acharya confirmed.
In total, police fired 58 rounds of live bullets, 746 rounds of tear gas, and 192 blank shots.
The situation worsened after Prasai and Rabindra Mishra, speaking from the protest stage in Tinkune, reportedly urged demonstrators to seize Parliament, Singha Durbar, and the airport.
According to Acharya, this call to action led to vandalism and intensified the confrontation between police and protesters.
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