Clashes and demonstrations continued over the rape and murder case of 13-year-old Nirmala Panta in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur, on Wednesday. Security personnel lobbed tear gas canisters and swung batons at demonstrators gathered outside the house of Nirmala’s friend Roshani Bam late in the afternoon. A large crowd assembled outside Roshani’s house in Bhagatpur, demanding that she and her sister should be interrogated about Nirmala’s death. The demonstrators believe that since Roshani and her family members were the last persons to see Nirmala alive, they could have some clue about the incident—perhaps even lead police to the real culprit. Police are meanwhile reluctant to question Nirmala’s friend Roshani and her family members. They are of the view that the case has been settled with the arrest of Dilip Kumar Bista, who has confessed to the rape and murder of Nirmala on July 26. Nirmala’s family and a large section of the Mahendra residents have dismissed Bista’s involvement in the case. They have been insisting that Bista, a man suffering from mental illness who wandered about the town asking for cigarettes from strangers, could not have committed the crime. Earlier on Wednesday, Nirmala’s friends and relatives were joined by a large number of Mahendranagar residents in a rally, demanding police to arrest the real culprit. Local grocers and traders voluntarily shuttered their businesses to join the demonstration. Rallies and demonstrations have become a daily occurrence in Mahendranagar ever since Nirmala’s body was recovered in a sugar cane field on July 27, a day after she was reported missing. The local residents are enraged at police and the local administration for not taking the case seriously. Their rage deepened particularly after police allegedly threatened Nirmala’s father with criminal charges for the protest that broke out following his daughter’s gruesome murder. When police presented 41-year-old Bista as Nirmala’s rapist and murderer on Monday, the protest only took more violent turn. Nirmala’s family and the people who have been protesting tirelessly for the past four weeks are convinced that police framed Bista to hide their own incompetence and to quell their protest. DSP Angur KC of the Central Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police told the Post on Wednesday that BIsta was arrested based on evidences that were collected from the crime scene. The investigators are preparing to confirm Bista’s involvement through DNA verification, he added. किशोरीको बलात्कारपछि हत्या घट्नाका दोषी पत्ता लगाउन माग गर्दै आएका स्थानीय र प्रहरीबीच बुधबार पनि पटक पटक भएको झडपमा दुवैतर्फ ठूलो संख्यामा घाईते भएका छन् । मृतक किशोरी पढ्न गएको घरमा आन्दोलनकारी केन्द्रित हुँदा झडप भएको हो । महेन्द्रनगर बजार क्षेत्र दिनभरि तनावग्रस्त हुन पुग्यो । स्थानीय र पीडित परिवारले सुरुदेखि शंका गरिरहेको उक्त घरमा पस्न खोज्दा प्रहरीले लाठी चार्ज र अश्रुग्यास प्रहार गरेको हो । आन्दोलनमा उत्रेका स्थानीयले घर तोडफोड गर्न खोजेका थिए । दिनभरि बजार क्षेत्रमा केन्द्रित रहेको आन्दोलन सांझ किशोरी पढ्न गएको रोशनी बमको घरमा केन्द्रित भएको हो । झडपमा कति जना घाईते भए भन्ने एकिन हुन सकेको छैन । स्थानीयतर्फ १०/१२ जना भन्दा बढी घाईते भएको उनीहरु बताउँछन् । बम परिवारको घर गाउँमा हुँदा प्रहरीले प्रहार गरेको अश्रुग्यासबाट महिला र बालबालिकाहरु प्रभावित भएका छन् । प्रहरीले उक्त क्षेत्रमा मात्रै करीब ३० सेल भन्दा बढी अश्रुग्यास प्रहार गरेको छ । यसैगरी महेन्द्रनगर बजारमा पनि १५ सेल अश्रुग्यास प्रहार भएको जिल्ला प्रहरी कार्यालय कञ्चनपुरका डीएसपी ज्ञान बहादुर सेठीले बताउनुभयो । सोमबार सांझ प्रहरीले सार्वजनिक गरेको अिभयुक्त दिलिपसिंह विस्ट दोषी हुन नसक्ने भन्दै स्थानीय आन्दोलित बनेका हुन् । उनीहरुले किशोरी पढ्न गएको घरका युवतीहरुलाई अनुसन्धानको दायरामा ल्याउन माग गरेका छन् । तर प्रहरीले भने हालसम्म जुटेको प्रमाणका आधारमा विष्ट नै दोषी देखिएको जनाएको छ । केन्द्रीय अनुसन्धान ब्युरोका इन्चार्ज डीएसपी अंगुर जिसीले धेरै प्रमाण जुटेको र विष्टको डीएनए पनि परिक्षणका लागि पठाउने तयारी भईरहेको बताउनुभयो ।