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4 protesters killed in anti-king protest in Nepal+(Japan Economic Newswire Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)KATHMANDU, April 19_(Kyodo) _ Security forces opened fire on protesters in eastern Nepal on Wednesday, killing four and wounding dozens of others, local media reports said. The incident occurred in the town of Chandragadhi, some 450 kilometers east of the capital, while a crowd was staging a protest against King Gyanendra, the reports said. The reports identified two of the dead as Rajan Giri and Suraj Biswas, with the other two not immediately identified. The deaths raise the number of people killed by security forces to 10 since the current wave of unrest began 14 days ago. Earlier in the day the government released prominent opposition party leader Madhav Kumar Nepal from detention. Nepal, general secretary of the Marxist-Leninist Party, was arrested on March 23. Earlier he was placed under house arrest on Jan. 19 ahead of a protest rally in the capital city. Nepal's party is the second dominant partner of the current alliance of seven political parties agitating over King Gyanendra's direct rule. Also set free Wednesday were a number of other political leaders detained in the wake of the ongoing anti-king protests and demonstrations, government officials said. Meanwhile, a special envoy sent by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to defuse the country's ongoing turmoil arrived in Kathmandu on Wednesday. India shares a long border with Nepal. Karan Singh, an upper house parliamentarian and a relative of the Nepalese royal family, is scheduled to hold talks with the Nepalese monarch and leaders of political parties at the forefront of the present anti-royal regime campaign. In brief remarks on arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport, Singh said, "India would like to see a peaceful and prosperous Nepal." He answered in the affirmative when asked if he is optimistic about peace returning to the Himalayan kingdom. He soon after held talks with Girija Prasad Koirala, president of the Nepali Congress Party, after which he said, "All should unite to restore democracy in Nepal." India was seriously concerned about the turn of events in Nepal, Singh added. The Indian special envoy is slated to have an audience with King Gyanendra on Thursday. Singh is accompanied by Indian Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran, who separately arrived at the capital on Wednesday. Anti-king protests and demonstrations continued in the Nepalese capital on the 14th day of the indefinite general strike called by the agitating political parties. In the western resort town of Pokhara some 250 teachers were rounded up as they defied a daylong curfew imposed in the tourist town. Fresh protests and demonstrations also broke out in the southwestern town of Nepalgunj on Wedensday, local media reports said. |