Rights activists held in Nepal for protesting against India

KATHMANDU: Over two dozen rights activists in Nepal were today detained for holding a demonstration outside the Indian Embassy here, protesting the blockade of key trade points at the border with India which has led to severe shortage of essentials and fuel crisis in the country.

The rights activists associated with Human Rights and Peace Society ( HURPES), were staging a sit-in outside the Indian Embassy, demanding India to lift "the economic embargo imposed on Nepal" after the promulgation of the Constitution in September.

The placards carried by the activists read slogans like "India blockade is violation of human rights", "Modi Ji End blockade", "respect Nepal's sovereignty", and "India blockade is crime against humanity".

About 26 protesters detained during the demonstration include veteran human rights activists Krishna Pahadi, Renuka Poudel, Krishna Kadel, Pushpa KC, Renuka Kaucha and Januka Panta.

The HURPES has launched various programmes to protest against the Nepal-India border blockade ahead of the International Human Rights Day on December 10.

It has also launched a signature campaign against the border blockade.

Since the promulgation of the Constitution in Nepal in September, the Indian-origin Madhesi population has been agitating as they believe the country's new Constitution discriminates against them, denying them equal standing with other Nepalis.

The agitation obstructed supply of essential commodities including petrol thereby creating a crisis in Nepal, which accused India of imposing a "economic blockade".

India maintains that it has imposed no such blockade, and the restrictions are a result of security concerns as Madhesis are protesting the new Constitution in the Terai region of Nepal bordering India.