1 killed, 2 injured in Dhanusha Scorpio jeep hit

A person died and two other sustained injuries when a Scorpio jeep bearing an Indian registration number plate hit them at Tinkairiya in Bideha Municipality-6 of Dhanusha district on Saturday.

The deceased has been identified as Harichan Mandal (35).

The four-wheeler (BR. 0PB-3902) heading towards Kamala from Janakpur yesterday evening, police said.

The injured have been sent to the Janakpur Provincial Hospital for treatment.

Police said that they have impounded the vehicle and arrested its driver for investigation.

 

Taplejung man killed in lightning strike

A man died after being struck by a lightning in Taplejung.

The deceased has been identified as Mukesh Bhattarai (23) of Ambegudin Lhasa Tole of Sirijunga Rural Municipality-2.

According to Inspector Kailash Kumar Adhikari, spokesperson at the District Police Office, the incident occurred at around 9 pm yesterday.

Critically injured in the incident, Bhattarai was rushed to a hospital but doctors pronounced him dead on arrival.

 

Sri Lanka imposes curfew and blocks social media amid protests

A 36-hour curfew has been declared in Sri Lanka, as a state of emergency is enforced amid violent protests against food and fuel shortages, BBC reported.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa issued a notice prohibiting anyone from being on any public road, in a park, on trains, or on the seashore, unless they have written permission from the authorities. 

The curfew began at dusk on Saturday.

Social media sites have been blocked, including Facebook and Twitter.

WhatsApp is also down, and mobile phone users received a message saying this was "as directed by the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission". 

The stringent restrictions are aimed at preventing new protests, after crowds were accused of setting vehicles ablaze near the president's private residence on Thursday.

The military has since been deployed and now has the power to arrest suspects without warrants, according to BBC.

The island nation is in the midst of a major economic crisis. It is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which is used to pay for fuel imports.

Faced with power cuts lasting half a day or more, and a lack of fuel and essential food and medicines, public anger has reached a new high.

Thursday's protest outside President Rajapaksa's Colombo house began peacefully, but participants said things turned violent after police fired tear gas, water cannons and also beat people present.

Protesters retaliated against the police by pelting them with stones.

At least two dozen police personnel were reportedly injured during the clashes, according to an official cited by Reuters news agency. 

On Friday, 53 demonstrators were arrested, and local media reported that five news photographers were detained and tortured at a police station. The government said it would investigate the latter claim. 

Despite the crackdown, protests continued, and spread to other parts of the country.

Demonstrators in the capital carried placards calling for the president's resignation, BBC reported.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's decision to impose a state of emergency has come as a shock to many. 

One of the most draconian pieces of legislation in Sri Lanka, it is meant to be deployed in situations of "exceptional threat, danger or disaster". 

One of the last times it was invoked, for instance, was in the aftermath of the deadly Easter Sunday bombings in 2019. 

The law allows for the detention of people without proof or the presumption of innocence, and severely restricts fundamental rights such as the freedom of movement and expression. 

It also allows the police and military to arrest and detain people without warrants.

This has given rise to fears that the government is going to resort to a brutal crackdown on protesters, who are angry about the toll taken on their lives by the ongoing economic crisis. 

Civil protesters and journalists have already reported being tortured by police for simply being present at the protests outside Mr Rajapaksa's home, and one of the organisers was taken in for questioning late on Friday night. 

The imposition of the law cannot be challenged in the courts, although parliament will need to ratify it within 14 days of its declaration. 

The government has the majority in parliament to pass it. Thereafter it will need to be extended on a monthly basis, according to BBC.

President Rajapaksa said the decision to declare a state of emergency was taken in the interests of public security, the protection of public order, and to ensure the maintenance of supplies and essential services.

The demonstrations mark a massive turnaround in popularity for Mr Rajapaksa, who swept into power with a majority win in 2019, promising stability and a "strong hand" to rule the country, BBC reported.


 

 


 

 

 

Nepal records 11 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday

Nepal reported 11 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday.

According to the Ministry of Health and Population, 2, 083 swab samples were tested in the RT-PCR method, of which 10 returned positive. Likewise, 1, 277 people underwent antigen tests, of which one was tested positive.

The Ministry said that no one died of virus in the last 24 hours. The Ministry said that 90 infected people recovered from the disease.

As of today, there are 942 active cases in the country.