Unwilling contestants face cops’ wrath Himalayan News Service Rajbiraj, February 4: Plainclothes security personnel this morning detained those withdrawing their nominations for the civic polls for three hours and released them later. Policemen rounded up Aasha Devi Upadhyaya and ward member Raju Pariyar from their houses. They had announced the withdrawal of candidacy yesterday through newspapers. “My son filed his nomination without informing us. He withdrew the same later, but security forces arrested him,” said Tara Devi (58), Pariyar’s mother. Family sources quoted Pariyar as saying that the administration forced him to refrain from withdrawing his candidacy. Security forces also reached the house of Sakir Hussen, a ward member candidate of ward number-3, this morning, family sources said. Candidates contesting the polls are being lodged at a guest house in Rajbiraj municipality and the DDC office. Meanwhile, one candidate of Rajbiraj municipality allegedly misbehaved with a member of the Nepali Congress, Saptari, Bina Devi Pokharel, last night. Organising a press meet at her house, Pokharel said Sakal Dev Yadav, a candidate for the post of deputy mayor misbehaved with her. “Yadav had pasted a poster on the door of my house. As I tried to remove it, he threatened to kill me,” she said. Security personnel had accompanied Yadav at her house, she added. Elected officials go missing NEPALGUNJ: Officials of Nepalgunj municipality who have been elected unopposed are missing since their election. Even the family members don’t know their whereabouts. Gita Teli, wife of chairman of ward number 8, Ramu Teli, a rickshaw puller earlier, said she hasn’t seen her husband since the past eight days. Chairman of ward number 16, Brij Lal Chidimar, too, is missing since he filed his nomination, while his daughter-in-law, who is a member of the same ward is also missing. Though chairman of ward number 1, Lal Bahadur Khatri, contacted his family on the day he was elected, he is now out of contact, while the mayor, Bipin Shrestha, is in Kathmandu. Work has been affected in offices due to these officials’ absence. — HNS