Five juveniles dead, over 7,000 inmates flee prisons amid Nepal protests

At least five juveniles died during a clash with security personnel at a jail in western Nepal while more than 7000 inmates escaped from various prisons across the country amid the violent antigovernment protests according to media reportsThe massive demonstrations which forced Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to step down on Tuesday led to a serious lawandorder situation across multiple districts In response the Nepal Army imposed nationwide restrictive orders followed by a curfew on Wednesday reported news agency PTIInmates took advantage of the unrest to attempt escapes from prisons resulting in violent clashes across several correctional facilities since TuesdayFive juvenile inmates died in a clash with security personnel at the Naubasta Correctional Home in Naubasta Regional Jail located in Baijnath Rural Municipality3 of Banke on Tuesday night The Rising Nepal reported according to PTIThe juveniles were killed and four others sustained injuries when police opened fire after inmates tried to seize weapons from security personnel stated the newspaper quoting the Naubasta Juvenile Correctional Home officeAccording to authorities 149 of the 585 inmates from the prison and 76 of the 176 detainees from the juvenile home escaped during the incident reported PTIMyRepublica reported that around 7000 inmates have fled from various jails nationwide Citing Home Ministry sources the paper said escapes were reported from multiple facilities including Dillibazar Jail 1100 Chitwan 700 Nakkhu 1200 Jhumpka in Sunsari 1575 Kanchanpur 450 Kailali 612 Jaleshwar 576 Kaski 773 Dang 124 Jumla 36 Solukhumbu 86 Gaur 260 and Bajhang 65The prisoners threatened security personnel while breaking out With convicts serving sentences for various crimes now at large fear has gripped the public Many victims of these crimes have reportedly fled their homes fearing reprisals the report saidIn a separate incident all 471 inmates including 43 women escaped from the district jail in Sindhuligadhi Sindhuli in southern Nepalrsquos Bagmati province The prison administration said inmates set fire inside the facility on Wednesday morning and broke the main gate to fleeSuperintendent of Police Laldhwaj Subedi confirmed that all prisoners had broken out of the jail MyRepublica addedThe Kathmandu Post reported that more than 500 inmates escaped from the Nawalparasi West District Prison in southern Nepal Prisoners at the district jail in Nawalparasi West have escaped after they set fires and raised slogans demanding release inside the prison the newspaper said It added that despite efforts to control them most inmates managed to fleeIn Kathmandu a prisoner attempting to escape from Dillibazar Jail was captured by local youths and handed over to the Nepali ArmySeveral inmates also escaped from Rajbiraj prison in Saptari after setting fire inside the facility on Wednesday afternoon Despite security personnel firing multiple rounds of tear gas to control the situation some inmates fled The prison housed 397 inmates at the time officials saidIn Parsa inmates attempted to escape Birgunj prison by breaking a large hole in the southern wall Prison chief Khemraj Bhusal said The situation was brought under control after hours of effort by security personnelAccording to KhabarHub A video circulating on social media shows an inmate breaking through a windowpane to flee the prison premises Witnesses said locals chased him down after spotting him running away The detainee was restrained by residents before being handed over to nearby security forces The report did not specify if the incident occurred on Tuesday or WednesdayIn another case at least 36 prisoners escaped from a jail in Chandanath Municipality6 Jumla in western Nepal Police said the escape occurred at 1202 am on Wednesday when prisoners reportedly struck the jail warden with a wooden rod and broke the main gateDSP Rabin Babu Regmi chief of police in Jumla said the search for escaped inmates is ongoing The jail held 98 inmates in total of whom 36 have escaped while 62 remain in police custody A total of 15 soldiers have been deployed under the Nepal Army command to secure the jail the report saidWith PTI inputs