Sujan, Preparing for Korea to Settle Debts After His Father’s Death, Meets Tragic End in Balkumari

In a heart-wrenching incident today, 23-year-old Sujan Raut, hailing from Dailekh, lost his life during a protest in Kathmandu. Sujan had ventured to the capital with dreams of employment in Korea, driven by the responsibility to support his widowed mother after the demise of his father, Bhakta Bahadur Raut, just a year ago.

The protest unfolded near the Employment Permit System (EPS) branch office in Balkumari, where youth gathered to demand equal opportunities for those who had taken the shipbuilding exam. Sujan, who had come to prepare for the Korean language exam, became part of the demonstration.

Tragically, the situation escalated when the police responded with baton charges and shots fired after the agitated youth burned the vehicle of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Minister Prakash Jwala. Sujan sustained a severe chest injury during the police action, falling unconscious on the road. Despite friends rushing him to Kist Medical College, the doctors declared him dead upon arrival.

The loss of Sujan is not isolated, as another youth, Birendra Shah of Doti, also succumbed to police firing during the protest. The incident could have been averted had the Patan High Court’s order, allowing all participants in the shipbuilding exam to apply for the manufacturing sector, been issued a few hours earlier.

Sujan’s journey to Kathmandu was fueled by the necessity to find employment and support his family after the demise of his father. Bhakta, a successful businessman and vice president of Dailekh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, battled cancer and passed away on Mangsir 12 last year. The family’s once-prosperous business in Dailekh market crumbled, leaving Sujan with the responsibility to seek opportunities abroad.

As the news of Sujan’s tragic demise reaches his hometown, relatives, including his uncle Tek Bahadur Katuwal, are on their way to Kathmandu to identify his body. The grieving mother, Nanda, is left to bear the weight of losing her husband and now her only son, who sought a brighter future but met an untimely end in the pursuit of employment opportunities abroad.