(Image source from: PTI)
At least five young inmates lost their lives during a confrontation with security forces at a correctional facility in western Nepal. Meanwhile, over 7,000 prisoners fled from various jails across the nation during the violent protests against the government, as reported by the media. The widespread protests that led to the resignation of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli on Tuesday created a critical law and order crisis in different areas, prompting the Nepal Army to implement national restrictions followed by a curfew on Wednesday. Inmates seized the opportunity offered by the protests to attempt escapes from prisons, resulting in conflicts at multiple prison locations since Tuesday. According to The Rising Nepal newspaper, five young inmates died in a clash with security forces at Naubasta Correctional Home located in Baijnath Rural Municipality-3 of Banke on Tuesday night.
The five young inmates were killed, and four others suffered serious injuries when the police fired shots during a conflict that erupted as inmates tried to seize the weapons of the security staff at the correctional facility, reported the newspaper, citing the office of the Naubasta Juvenile Correctional Home. As per officials, 149 out of 585 inmates from the prison and 76 out of 176 detainees from the juvenile center escaped amid the chaos. MyRepublica newspaper indicated that approximately 7,000 inmates have fled from various prisons nationwide. According to sources from the Home Ministry, escapes were noted from several facilities, including Dillibazar Jail with 1,100, Chitwan with 700, Nakkhu with 1,200, Jhumpka in Sunsari with 1,575, Kanchanpur with 450, Kailali with 612, Jaleshwar with 576, Kaski with 773, Dang with 124, Jumla with 36, Solukhumbu with 86, Gaur with 260, and Bajhang with 65. The report mentioned that "the inmates threatened security staff during their breakout. With convicts serving different sentences now free, the public is terrified. Many victims of these crimes have allegedly left their homes, fearing revenge."
In another report, the publication stated that all 471 inmates, including 43 women, escaped from the district jail located in Sindhuligadhi, Sindhuli in the Bagmati province of southern Nepal. The prison management announced that the inmates ignited fires inside the facility early Wednesday and managed to break the main gate to escape. Superintendent of Police Laldhwaj Subedi confirmed that all prisoners had exited the jail, as reported by the news portal. The Kathmandu Post mentioned that over 500 inmates broke free from the Nawalparasi West District Prison in southern Nepal. "Inmates at the Nawalparasi West district jail escaped after setting fires and shouting for their release from within the prison," noted the newspaper. Despite efforts to control the situation, most inmates successfully fled, it added. In Kathmandu, a prisoner trying to escape from Dillibazar Jail was caught by local young people and turned over to the Nepali Army. Several inmates also made a break from Rajbiraj prison in Saptari after igniting a fire within the facility on Wednesday afternoon.
Even though security staff used a lot of tear gas to manage the situation, some prisoners got away. Officials mentioned that there were 397 inmates in the prison when this happened. In Parsa, inmates tried to escape from Birgunj prison by making a big hole in the southern wall. The prison head, Khemraj Bhusal, stated that security teams took hours to bring the situation under control. "A video being shared on social media showed the inmate breaking a window to get out of the prison area. People nearby chased him after they saw him running," reported KhabarHub. Locals caught the detainee and gave him to nearby security forces, but it was not clear if this happened on Tuesday or Wednesday. In another case, at least 36 inmates got away from a prison in Chandanath Municipality-6, Jumla, which is in the mountainous region of western Nepal, according to the news site.
Police reported that the escape occurred at 12:02 am on Wednesday when the inmates reportedly struck the jail warden with a wooden stick and broke open the main gate to escape. DSP Rabin Babu Regmi, the police chief in Jumla, informed that they are still searching for the escaped inmates. "The prison had a total of 98 inmates, with 36 having escaped, while 62 are still in police custody. 15 soldiers have been sent in under Nepal Army command to secure the prison," as stated in the news report.
