At least two dozen activists of the Madhesi People’s Rights Forum (MPRF) were arrested today from their sit-in organised in the capital to protest the ‘flaws’ in the interim constitution promulgated on Monday.

The MPRF activists including MP Amresh Kumar Singh and MPRF chairman Upendra Yadav were apprehended after they started burning the copies of interim constitution at Maitighar Mandala, Kathmandu. The protesters said the interim constitution failed to address the demands of Madhesi people.

The MPRF also called a daylong general strike today in Terai districts, closing down marketplaces, industries and transport services.

Meanwhile, the Joint Forum for Human Rights and Peace (JFHRP) has asked the government to immediately release the MPRF members who were arrested during their protest programme and urged the government and the interim parliament to look into the demands for amendment in the interim constitution to make it more inclusive.

The JFHRP also denounced the MPRF activists’ act of burning the copies of interim constitution even as there are provisions in the statute for amendment in it at the interim parliament.