At least one Nepalese man has been killed in clashes between police forces and demonstrators protesting against a proposed new constitution in the South Asian country, security sources say.

The man was killed on Wednesday during a protest rally in the country’s eastern district of Saptari, police said.

Scuffles erupted after security forces tried to remove a barricade of felled trees the demonstrators had used to block a highway. A curfew was declared after the incident.

Nepal has recently witnessed a series of protests over the new constitution, which aims to restructure the country as a federal state made up of seven provinces, and draw a line under a decade-long civil war that ended in 2006.

In early June, Nepal’s major rival political parties reached a historic agreement to end years of deadlock on a new constitution for the country. Four parties – two ruling and two opposition – inked a historic deal, including a settlement on federalism, the main bone of contention among political parties.

Regional parties have long pushed for new provinces to be created along lines that could favor historically marginalized communities. Other parties saw the demand as divisive and threatening national unity.

Experts say the agreement leaves the issue of provincial borders unresolved, an omission which could create future problems.

The protesters argue that the new internal borders will discriminate against historically marginalized communities, whose members demand their own separate provinces.