A group of demonstrators on Thursday attacked a mass gathering organized by the district-based political parties in Birendranagar to call for an undivided mid-west province with Surkhet as its capital. The attack again flared up tension in Surkhet and Kalikot districts that had begun to calm down after intense protests of the past few days. The attackers seized the microphone held by Ganesh Kanchan Bharati, president of Federation of Nepalese Journalists Association (FNJ), Surkhet chapter, as he was addressing the gathering held in coordination with Nepal University Teachers' Union. As the attackers began to tear political party flags at the venue, the local party leaders and cadres ran helter-skelter. Meanwhile, the police have arrested over 50 agitators involved in attacks on mass gathering and party offices. The protests in Kalikot in favour of intact mid-west have been intensifying in the recent days. Protests have been continuing for the last 12 days demanding autonomous Karnali province and undivided mid-west, throwing normal lives out of gear in Kalikot and surrounding areas. The banda has not only hit lives in five districts of Karnali zone but also affected neighbouring districts of Dailekh, Achham and Bajura.