24-year-old killed for opposing illegal extraction of construction material in Nepal, 4 arrested

A 24-year-old man has been killed in southern Nepal's Dhanusha district for opposing illegal extraction of construction material. Dilip Kumar Mahato, 24, who had a mechanical engineering degree from Bhopal, was run over by a tipper lorry owned by one Bipin Mahato, police said on Saturday.

Other than Bipin, three others have been arrested in connection with the murder. The illegal operation was going on for two years behind Dilip's house on the Aurahi River, police said, adding Mahato had opposed the extraction from the start.

Mahato had received death threats and was even offered inducements, but he continued to protest against the illegal operation. On Friday, Dilip heard the clamor of loaders and tippers coming from the river.

As he began to quarrel with the extraction crew, a tipper ran him over, dragging him under its carriage, killing him on the spot. Dilip had just returned from Bhopal India after giving the final exams of mechanical engineering graduation.