Dozens of people have been hurt in clashes with police while demonstrating during a general strike in the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu.
Police used batons and tear gas against thousands of protesters and those injured or arrested include a number of senior opposition leaders.
The strike was in protest at alleged police brutality at demonstrations.
There have been many street protests in Kathmandu over the king's decision to sack an elected government in 2002.
Total shutdown
Five parties from the dissolved parliament have been at loggerheads with the monarch ever since.
They want him to restore the dismissed government or create a new one which includes their leaders.
The BBC's Sushil Sharma in Kathmandu says the strike has crippled life in Kathmandu and neighbouring districts.
Businesses, schools and factories have remained shut and the streets have been deserted.
King's interview
Several protesters have been hurt in recent clashes with the police.
Batons, tear gas and water cannons have been used against the protesters, whom security forces have accused of breaking the law by chanting anti-monarchy slogans.
Although the opposition parties say they are still committed to a constitutional monarchy, their youth wings have been pressing for a republican system.
They vowed to step up their protests after a recent interview by King Gyanendra in which he appeared to have dismissed their demands.
The king dismissed the government in 2002 saying it was not doing enough in a bloody struggle against insurgents fighting for a Maoist republic.
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