Sunsari’s Dewanganj area has been tense since Sunday night, after a dispute over a flag placed at a local intersection turned into a clash. Local administration has deployed a large number of security personnel to calm the tension at the village level. While no unpleasant incident has occurred so far, both sides remain dissatisfied and tense, according to the local administration. The effects of the tension seen in Dewanganj have also spread to some other districts in Madhesh.
To normalise the situation in Dewanganj, locals have demanded the presence of political leadership. According to Dewanganj Rural Municipality Chairperson Bechan Prasad Mehta, locals have demanded that the home minister come to the site himself to address the problem.
Shiva Kumar Yadav, a resident of Dewanganj-3, also said locals expect the home minister and prime minister to visit in order to normalise the situation in the village.
However, Yadav says locals are unhappy that Home Minister Sudan Gurung, who has gone to border points and hotels in the name of monitoring, did not come to the site during this sensitive time.
Although the home minister has not visited the site so far, he has sent his chief personal secretary (PA), James Karki, to Dewanganj. Along with Karki, Paras Chhetri, personal secretary to Infrastructure Development Minister Sunil Lamsal, has also gone there.
They arrived in Sunsari on Tuesday evening and reached the Dewanganj area along with a drone. Their team also monitored the site on Wednesday.
At an all-party meeting held Wednesday evening, Karki represented the home minister and presented the government’s position. He said the home minister and Prime Minister Balen Shah were serious and concerned about the incident, and that the government was committed to resolving the problem.
At the meeting, however, Chairperson Mehta argued that the central leadership needed to come to the village itself to understand the real situation.
“They need to come to the village and understand the real situation. It’s not enough to stay in Kathmandu; they must go to the site and talk,” he says. “It’s been four days; what facilities have people received from the ministry? What has the government done?”
He expressed dissatisfaction, alleging that the Home Ministry’s representative and the Chief District Officer had not answered his calls at the time of the incident.
“If the Chief District Officer doesn’t even pick up when the municipality chair calls, how are people supposed to feel the government’s presence?” he asks.
He urged government representatives to go to the site itself and talk with locals. In response, Karki said he had come precisely to have that dialogue, and that the focus now needed to shift toward a solution.
At the all-party meeting, Chairperson Mehta demanded that the deceased be declared a martyr, that the injured receive free treatment, that the madrasa in Kaptanganj be properly managed, and that those responsible for the incident be prosecuted. He said these demands needed to be addressed by the home minister in person in Dewanganj.
In response, the home minister’s chief personal secretary, James Karki, said the government was ready to move forward with the demands, including the martyr declaration, through the legal process. He said the home minister would also visit Dewanganj once all sides reached agreement.
Although clashes and tension persisted from Sunday night through Tuesday night, the situation in Dewanganj has been comparatively calm since Wednesday. A large security presence has been deployed given the potential risk. The curfew remains in effect until Thursday morning, with further decisions to be made based on an assessment of the situation, according to the local administration.
Five-point collective commitment
To normalise the situation following the clash in Kaptanganj, the all-party meeting reached a five-point decision.
The meeting, attended by political parties, security agencies, and stakeholders, paid tribute to the deceased and urged all sides to exercise restraint.
Expressing regret over the communal tension and unrest seen in various parts of the district following the Dewanganj incident, the meeting decided that all sides would take initiative from their respective positions to prevent anarchy and unwanted activity from spreading in society.
The public has been urged not to post or share misleading or provocative content on social media, and to trust only official information.
Similarly, parents have been asked to instruct their children not to go out unnecessarily, not to take part in any clash or crowd, and to exercise restraint.
Since the curfew order issued by the local administration remains in effect, gatherings, processions, and demonstrations are banned.
DSP Chandra Bahadur Khadka, spokesperson for the District Police Office, Sunsari, said the district’s situation is improving but has not yet fully returned to normal.
