As efforts continue at the political level to defuse tensions in Sunsari and other Tarai districts, local governments, administrations, and the general public have also stepped up initiatives to maintain peace and social harmony.
Peaceful efforts are underway in various locations to restore normalcy following the incident in Kaptangunj of Dewangunj Rural Municipality-3 in Sunsari and the unrest that subsequently spread across several Tarai districts.
The violence, which claimed three lives – two in Sunsari and one in Siraha – has affected many parts of the Tarai. In protest, markets remain closed in Biratnagar of Morang district in Koshi province, as well as in Jaleshwar and Gaushala in Madhesh province.
Police said that transportation services have also been disrupted in many areas.
To prevent the situation from deteriorating further, all-party meetings and harmony rallies are being organized in different places to maintain religious and social harmony.
In Kalyanpur Bazar of Khadak Municipality in Saptari, members of both the Hindu and Muslim communities participated in a harmony rally under the slogan: "Let's maintain social harmony and strengthen brotherhood."
In Morang, a harmony rally is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. on Friday from Mahendra Chowk to the District Administration Office in Biratnagar.
The District Administration Office in Dhanusha said that an all-party and all-stakeholder meeting, including members of the House of Representatives, has also been organized to help restore normalcy.
Considering the security situation, an indefinite curfew has been imposed in parts of Janakpurdham Sub-metropolitan City in Dhanusha, as well as in Rajbiraj and Bodebarsain municipalities of Saptari.
Although the government and the victims’ families reached a seven-point agreement over the Kaptangunj incident in Sunsari, the curfew remains in effect in Dewangunj and surrounding areas.
According to Ram Narayan Mehta, uncle of Mithilesh Mehta, who was injured in the Dewangunj incident, protests in Dewangunj have ceased following the agreement with the government.
He added that the situation in Kaptangunj has remained peaceful since Friday morning.
