Yoga teacher Shyam Sundar Shrestha,38, left his home in Kirtipur for a quick spin in his bicycle on Saturday evening. When he did not return home, relatives carried out a search and informed police.

His body was found by a passerby the next morning at the gate of Tribhuvan University, drowned in a shallow drain. He had fallen into it in the dark, was knocked unconscious and died in the sewer.

Locals had complained about that open hole to KUKL for the past six months, but nothing had been done. There are similar death traps all over the city, and the Municipality seems oblivious to the danger to citizens.

Besides locals, a number of tourists have also fallen in holes. With its potholes, Thamel has become a training area for mountain biking and trekking. One visitor had to cancel a trek having twisting an ankle even before he got to the mountains.

KUKL cannot get away with passing the buck for Shyam Sundar Shrestha’s murder. But in a state of impunity, it probably will. It is time outraged citizens rose up to demand justice.

The Pink Yak

Do you have a photograph or video of a dangerous pothole or open drain in Kathmandu Valley? Mail to [email protected]