Tension has escalated in Madhesh province following controversy over the appointment of a new chief minister.
Seven political parties represented in the provincial assembly have opposed the process of appointing the new chief minister.
In protest, the office of the chief secretary at the Office of the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers has been vandalized.
A team including provincial assembly members entered the office and vandalized the chamber.
They even threw away Nepal’s national flag that was inside the chief secretary’s office.
The team of provincial lawmakers and others vandalized the temporary Chief Minister’s Office set up at the sports covered hall and padlocked various ministries, according to Under Secretary Basudev Malla, information officer of the Chief Minister’s Office.
“The chief minister’s chamber is currently kept at the Ministry of Home, Communications and Law. The Chief Minister’s Office is located elsewhere. Lawmakers and workers came and vandalized inside. One or two employees were also assaulted,” he said. “Since the secretaries had not arrived, I instructed all employees to go home for their safety.”
After causing minor destruction, they locked the rooms and took the keys with them, he said. They have also padlocked the Ministry of Home and other ministries.
There has also been vandalism in front of the Office of the Province Chief. Demanding the resignation of Province Chief Sumitra Subedi Bhandari, provincial lawmakers and party workers from the Nepali Congress, Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP), Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP), among others, vandalized the area.
Boards and flowerpots in front of the Province Chief’s Office have been damaged. Videos have surfaced showing some lawmakers urging those vandalizing to leave.
Tires have also been burned in Janakpur as part of demonstrations against the appointment of the new chief minister.
