KATHMANDU, Sep 11: At least 13,000 inmates, including convicts and those under judicial custody, escaped from prisons and detention centers across the country on Tuesday and Wednesday amid the Gen Z protests.
Inmates in nearly all prisons staged violent demonstrations, setting fires and vandalizing prison property, overwhelming the outnumbered security guards.
On Tuesday night, inmates who escaped from Nakkhu Prison reached the Sundhara-based Central Prison to free other inmates, forcing the security personnel there to surrender within minutes.
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In Kathmandu alone, more than 3,300 prisoners escaped from Nakkhu Prison and 1,400 from the Central Prison. However, no inmates managed to flee from Dillibazar’s Charkhal Prison, where hundreds staged demonstrations until late Wednesday night under the close watch of the Nepali Army.
Mass prison breaks were also reported outside the capital: nearly 800 inmates fled in Kaski, 700 in Chitwan, about 500 in Kapilvastu, over 1,500 in Sunsari, nearly 400 in Saptari, about 100 in Solukhumbu, nearly 500 in Banke, over 600 in Kailali, 100 in Dadeldhura, and 300 in Dang, among others.
Convicts of heinous crimes—including murder, rape, and human trafficking—are among those who escaped, heightening security concerns for victims and the general public.
Meanwhile, 13 inmates who escaped from Gaur Prison in Rautahat district and crossed into India were apprehended by Indian police and handed over to Nepali authorities.
Tragedy struck in Kaski, where five children housed at a juvenile correction center in Sarangkot were killed on Wednesday when police opened fire as about 90 inmates attempted to break through the main gate.
Similarly, two convicts were killed and seven others injured at Dhading Prison after the Nepali Army opened fire to regain control.
Currently, Nepali Army personnel, supported by Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force, are guarding major prisons across the country. Authorities said some inmates with only a short time left to serve have begun voluntarily returning to custody.
