Nepal, Aug. 6 -- Eleven years ago, the struggle in the Madhes for autonomy and inclusion under a new federal Constitution came at the cost of 45 lives. On 26 July, a street dispute in a town near the Indian border in Sunsari sparked sectarian violence across the region.

The irony of it was that the initial clashes were between Hindu and Muslim groups, but the Armed Police Force and Nepal Police fired live rounds at protestors, ultimately killing three in Sunsari.

Sunsari's Kaptanganj town had been tense after a dispute over a Muslim banner on an electric pole being replaced with a Hindu one. Both groups taunted each other as a religious procession passed the Muslim neighbourhood. Police opened fire to quell the rioters.

As news of the...