The Armed Police Force has launched an investigation into the death of 45-year-old Bijay Sah of Puri Tole in ward 1 of Koshi Rural Municipality, Sunsari.

Sah, who earned his livelihood by operating an auto rickshaw, died after being hit by bullets fired by an Armed Police Force team around midnight on Wednesday.

Following the incident, locals staged protests throughout Thursday, demanding an impartial investigation and justice.

The Armed Police Force headquarters has formed a three-member investigation committee led by Senior Superintendent of Police Rabinraj Karnajit to probe the incident. The panel includes Superintendent of Police Dinesh Basnet from the Koshi Province Baraha Brigade and Deputy Superintendent of Police Bhuwan Bhandari from the force’s legal directorate.

“The committee has been tasked with finding out how the incident occurred and submitting its report at the earliest,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police Shailendra Thapa, assistant spokesperson for the Armed Police Force.

Meanwhile, Sunsari Armed Police Force chief Superintendent of Police Nirmal Kumar Thapa, Deputy Superintendent of Police Ganesh Datta Pandey of the Haripur border security unit and Police Inspector Manish Kumar Katuwal of the border outpost have been removed from their responsibilities pending investigation.

“They have only been asked to appear at the brigade for investigation,” Thapa said.

Following the death, locals protested in Laukahi Bazar, blocking the East-West Highway with Sah’s body and setting fire to an Armed Police Force post. Protesters also pelted stones at police, who fired shots in the air to disperse the crowd.

The incident occurred during a clash between security personnel and people transporting smuggled goods from the border area on auto rickshaws. The armed police claimed that they opened fire in retaliation after the group attacked the security team while they were attempting to seize illegally imported goods from India.