KATHMANDU: Youths sprayed red ink on CPN-UML leader Mahesh Basnet’s car in Biratnagar, Morang. The youths reportedly ran from the roadside and threw red ink at the vehicle carrying Basnet, which was following a police van.
Basnet was on his way to Sunsari to participate in the Koshi Province–level gathering of the party when the incident occurred on the Airport Line road.
The vehicle was stopped immediately after the ink was thrown. Police have taken two youths into custody: 19-year-old Arijit Kunwar of Biratnagar-2 and 25-year-old Sanjog Gautam of Biratnagar-1. They are being held at the District Police Office, Morang.
A video shows the youths chanting slogans against Basnet while being transported to the District Police Office in a police van. Gautam said that he threw red ink at Basnet and the UML as a symbolic protest.
Basnet also confirmed that red ink was thrown at the vehicle he was traveling in. “When we were leaving the airport, two boys filled balloons with water and ash and threw them,” he said. “The police later caught them. We walked away.”
Calling the incident a “mockery of democracy,” Basnet alleged that the youths were attempting to disrupt the program.
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