5 dead, 42 injured as youths clash with police over social media ban in Nepal; army deployed
Kathmandu (PTI): Five people were killed and 42 others injured on Monday as violent demonstrations led by youths against a Nepal government ban on social media sites intensified in Kathmandu, prompting authorities to deploy the army to control the situation, officials said.
Thousands of youths, including school students, under the banner of Gen Z, clashed with the riot police in front of the Parliament building in Kathmandu.
The protests turned violent when some agitators entered the Parliament complex, prompting police to resort to baton charges, tear gas shells and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd, eyewitnesses said.
Forty-two people, including security personnel, were injured and are currently undergoing treatment in the Civil Hospital of Kathmandu, a Nepal Police spokesperson said.
Five people were killed in the violence, hospital sources said.
However, there is no police confirmation on the death toll.
The Army has been deployed to control the situation, military officials said.
The Kathmandu District Administration issued a prohibitory order from 12:30 pm to 10:00 pm in areas surrounding the Parliament building to curb the unrest.
“No movement of people, demonstration, meeting, gathering or sit-in will be allowed in the restricted zone,” Chief District Officer Chhabi Lal Rijal said in a notice.
The local administration later extended the restrictive order to various areas surrounding Rastrapati Bhawan, the Vice-President’s residence and the Prime Minister's Office.
The Nepal government on September 4 banned 26 social media sites, including Facebook, WhatsApp and X, that do not comply with the mandated registration process.
Although the government has clarified its stance that the social media sites were banned to bring them under regulation. But the general perception among the masses is that this will lead to an attack on free speech, and it may lead to censorship.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah accuses EC of ‘bias’, defends state guarantee schemes ahead of bypolls
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has accused the EC of "double standards" and "bias" after it sought details on the state’s guarantee schemes in Davanagere and Bagalkot districts, where bypolls are scheduled for Thursday.
In a post on 'X' on Wednesday, Siddaramaiah said the Election Commission of India had asked the Karnataka government for information on fund releases under five ongoing guarantee schemes in the constituencies going to polls.
The polls were necessitated following the deaths of senior Congress MLAs Shamanur Shivashankarappa and H Y Meti, respectively.
The schemes are Gruha Jyothi, which provides 200 units of free electricity to every household; Gruha Lakshmi, offering Rs 2,000 to women heading families; and Anna Bhagya, supplying 10 kg of rice per month to each member of BPL families.
In addition, Yuva Nidhi grants Rs 3,000 to unemployed graduates and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma holders aged 18–25 for two years, while Shakti enables women to travel free of charge within Karnataka on government non-luxury buses.
Siddaramaiah alleged that the ECI had remained silent when similar cash transfer schemes were announced in Maharashtra and Bihar ahead of elections, calling the scrutiny of Karnataka’s schemes a "clear case of bias".
"In states like Maharashtra and Bihar, cash transfer schemes were announced or fast-tracked just before elections, directly benefiting voters. Yet the ECI remained silent. This is not neutrality—it is complicity," he said.
The CM accused the BJP and NDA governments of "a double standard", noting that when they act, the ECI "looks the other way", but when Karnataka fulfils its promises, it faces "intense scrutiny".
He added that targeting the state’s guarantee schemes is "not just political but anti-poor, anti-women, and anti-Karnataka."
Siddaramaiah clarified that these schemes were not launched in connection with the bypolls but are ongoing programmes implemented as part of the Congress government’s commitments from the 2023 Assembly elections.
Funds are transferred regularly to beneficiaries in a transparent and structured manner, he added.
"The guarantees are part of governance—a direct investment in human dignity, household stability, and economic participation, not inducement," he said.
He also accused the BJP of "hypocrisy", saying that while it criticises Karnataka’s schemes as "freebies", it rolls out similar programmes in states it governs.
"The Karnataka model has set a benchmark for the country. What is deeply concerning, however, is the ECI’s selective approach," Siddaramaiah added.
