The INSEC Koshi Province Office, Biratnagar monitored Jhumka Jail, in Ramdhuni Municipality-5 of Sunsari, on 10 September. The monitoring was conducted after the prisoners and detainees escaping from the facility on the night of 9 September, taking advantage of the protests led by the Gen Z protest.
During INSEC’s monitoring, Jailor Chief Subash Lamichhane stated that, on 9 September after 5 pm, individuals from outside, together with inmates and detainees inside the jail created unrest and threatened to set the facility on fire under the cover of the Gen Z protests. To prevent further damage, the jail gate was opened, allowing 1,572 inmates and detainees to escape. He explained that security personnel refrained from opening fire, as doing so could have resulted in greater loss of life and property, and thus the prisoners and detainees were allowed to leave. Out of the two blocks of the jail, 1,572 inmates escaped simultaneously, leaving only 227 behind. As of 9 September the jail had a total of 1,799 inmates, of which 1,572 have now fled.
During the monitoring, Jailor Subas Lamichhane informed the INSEC team that, in the course of the inmates’ agitation, the use of force could have resulted in significant human and material losses. As a result, while some inmates managed to escape, others were deliberately allowed to leave. He further explained that although escaped inmates and detainees could technically be brought back, the resulting human and material damage would have been irreparable. Therefore, under the supervision of the Nepali Army, photographs were taken for record-keeping, and certain inmates and detainees were released under the Army’s oversight.
Jailor Subash Lamichhane informed that, among those who escaped from the jail on the night of 9 September, a total of 13 inmates voluntarily returned the following day. The jail had housed 1,744 inmates, including 65 foreign nationals of whom the majority were Indian. On the night of 9 September, 1,572 inmates including all Indian nationals escaped from the facility. Of these, seven from Block A and six from Block B, altogether 13, returned to the jail on 10 September.
Manohar Kumar Pokharel, Province Coordinator of INSEC Koshi, along with INSEC Sunsari Representative Jayakrishna Yadav, conducted monitoring of the Jhumka Jail as well as various government offices and institutions that had been set on fire. The INSEC monitoring team also observed the Area Police Office Itahari, Area Police Office Pakali, the Revenue Investigation Office Itahari, and the Traffic Office Itahari, among others. During the monitoring, it was found that not only government infrastructure but also personal and private vehicles had been set ablaze.
