This triggered a new round of violent clashes between protestors and policeoutside of the legislature.
Hundreds of protestors tried to push through barbed wire barriers and pelted police with stones. Both sides were left with injuries after police beat them with bamboo batons and fired tear gas and water canons.
Two of the Communist parties in the coalition government are the main opponents to the aid grant. They claim that the conditions of the grant agreement will override Nepal’s laws, and they threaten the country’s sovereignty. They claim it is part of Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy which includes military components that could allow American soldiers to be sent to Nepal.
Recent talks between U.S. officials and Nepalese officials were to assure them that the grant is only for Nepal’s future development. The money will be used to build power transmission lines and improve roads in the Himalayan nation.
While Gyanendra Bahadur Karaki, the government minister, presented the grant proposal to Parliament, several lawmakers protested the measure. Protesters were prevented from approaching the minister by a thick line of security officers.
It is expected that the debate will last for several days before the grant agreement can be put to a vote. The original plan was to hold the discussion on Wednesday, but there were disagreements between political parties and clashes outside Parliament that forced it to be postponed.
