Kathmandu, Mar 31 (PTI) The Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) on Tuesday announced a two-week-long protest starting April 11 against the arrest of deposed prime minister and party chair K P Sharma Oli.
The former prime minister and then home minister Ramesh Lekhak were arrested on Saturday for their alleged involvement in suppressing last year’s Gen Z protest, which left 76 people dead.
The arrests came after the newly formed Balendra Shah government decided to implement the report of the probe commission into the Gen Z protests in its first cabinet meeting. The CPN-UML in a statement said it would launch demonstrations in all municipalities on April 11 and stage similar protests across all wards on April 16.
It also said it would organise protests throughout all seven provincial capitals on April 20 and a grand protest rally here on April 25 to show its strength.
The party’s latest protest announcement comes after the Supreme Court on Monday refused to grant an interim relief to Oli and Lekhak.
The Kathmandu District Court on Monday granted a five-day judicial remand of Oli and Lekhak to Nepal Police to record their statements.
A high-level meeting of the CPN-UML on Tuesday termed the arrests by the newly-elected Balen government as illegal, unconstitutional and aimed at taking revenge.
Urging the government to immediately release the two leaders, the party said it would fight political and legal battles both on the streets and in parliament.
The party also plans to raise the issue in parliament as both the Houses commence on Thursday.
The CPN-UML has a strength of 25 representatives in the 275-member House of Representatives. It has asked all other political parties and civil society organisations to participate in its protest programmes.
Hundreds of CPN-UML activists organised protest rallies over the weekend, in which over a dozen party cadres were injured as they clashed with the riot police. Monday’s protest rally was peaceful. PTI SBP PY PY PY
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