Police rounded up over four dozen students from different locations in the capital Friday night in course of the thirty minutes long black out to protest the killing of a student leader in police firing and the steep hike of petrol prices, published reports said.

Security personnel were deployed in different locations of the city to ensure law and order and to see to it that no untoward incident would take place during the black out called between 7:15 to 7:45 pm by the eight student unions.

Police arrested students from different parts of the city in course of the black out. Students were charged with batons at Putalisadak and some of them were injured during the clashes.

After the security personnel charged with batons, the students vandalized vehicles plying in the streets. Police arrested Nepal Students’ Union General Secretary Gagan Thapa, Ramesh Rayamajhi, Tekraj Poudel, Lekhnath Pokhrel, Rajan Rai and Phulman Bal from Kamal Pokhari before the black out.

Similarly the police arrested six student leaders of the Nepal Communist Party (Revolutionary), a sister organization of the NCP (Maoist) from Kupondole and Exhibition Road.

Meanwhile Nepal Samacharpatra Daily reported from Nepalgunj that six students were injured during clashes with police Friday night. The students have called for a complete bandh in Nepalgunj on Saturday.

The black out programme called by the eight student unions to protest the price hike and death of a student leader was seen to have its effect in the major cities of the country. People in the major thoroughfare of the capital city were seen pulling down their shutters Friday night. nepalnews.com am Apr 12