RSP chair Lamichhane transferred to Birgunj for investigation; RSP calls rights body for help

Kathmandu / Dec 09: Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) chair and former home minister Rabi Lamichhane, who is currently in police custody under charges of cooperative frauds, organised crime, and money laundering, has been taken to Birgunj for further investigation.

Lamichhane, who was arrested on October 18 from RSP’s central office in Kathmandu, was initially taken to Kaski for questioning. On Monday, he was flown from Pokhara to Kathmandu and then to Simara and transported by road to Birgunj, where investigations into the case will continue.

In addition to Lamichhane, Chhabilal Joshi, another prominent figure and former deputy inspector general of Police, who is associated with the Gorkha Media Network, was also moved to Birgunj.

Joshi and Lamichhane are accused of embezzling funds from the Sanopaila Savings and Credit Cooperative in Birgunj.

Both Lamichhane and Joshi had previously been remanded in police custody after Kaski District Court extended their detention on Sunday by an additional four days for further investigation. Lamichhane’s detention has been repeatedly extended since his initial arrest, with previous remands ranging from 6 to 15 days.

Lamichhane and Joshi, among others, have been interrogated in Kaski, Rupandehi, Kathmandu and Chitwan as well on cooperative frauds.

Various reports of studies and probes conducted by police, special parliamentary probe panel, local governments and other agencies have found the involvement of RSP chief Lamichhane, Joshi and several other individuals in embezzling deposits of cooperatives based in Kathmandu, Kaski, Rupandehi, Chitwan and Birgunj.

RSP seeks rights body’s intervention in protecting Lamichhane’s human rights

Meanwhile, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has lodged a complaint at the National Human Rights Commission seeking its intervention in protecting the human rights of its president, Rabi Lamichhane, a two-time home minister.

The fourth-largest party in the House of Representatives has been accusing the KP Sharma Oli government of misusing the state apparatus to harass and defame Lamichhane. In the complaint lodged at the constitutional human rights watchdog, the party’s acting general secretary, Kabindra Burlakoti, has accused the state machinery of engaging in media trials against his party chief and vilifying him as a criminal while he is just an accused so far.

“They are providing secret documents to various media outlets to create a negative public image of Lamichhane,” the complaint reads.

The party has claimed that the only intention of the abrupt transfer of its president from Chitwan to Pokhara on Thursday midnight without prior notice was to torture him. Lamichhane, who was transferred to Chitwan from Pokhara to record his statement on cooperative fraud charges, was taken back at 11 pm on Thursday without allowing him to sleep, the complaint states.

The police, however, have been claiming he was transferred at night after a security assessment. Ever since he was taken to Chitwan, the party cadres had been resorting to protest against the arrest. At least a dozen people, including police personnel, were injured in the clashes on Thursday afternoon.

“The police have been torturing Lamichhane on different pretexts,” reads the complaint. “His personal diary, too, has been confiscated by the police in a blatant violation of privacy rights.”

Through the complaint, the party has demanded the commission’s immediate action to protect his fundamental rights. Demanding a fair investigation on the matter, the party has asked the commission “to ensure proper actions are taken against the culprits.” It has also urged the national human rights watchdog to become proactive in protecting human rights and ensuring the rule of law.

The officials at the commission say they have already asked their Pokhara regional office to investigate the matter. “We are also inquiring with the Nepal Police top officials to learn whether they directed the Chitwan police to transfer Lamichhane at midnight or was the decision of the local police after analysis of the situation there,” Yagya Adhikari, a joint-secretary at the commission, told the Post.

“We will investigate the matter fairly and come up with a report.”

Along with the RSP, leaders from other opposition parties have also started raising questions over “never-ending” custody against Lamichhane. After meeting him in police custody in Pokhara on Saturday, Rastriya Prajatantra Party chief whip Gyan Bahadur Shahi claimed that the police had treated him inhumanely. “There is no reason to keep him in custody for so long,” Shahi said. “It is clear that the government is biased against him.”

Nepal Samajbadi Party chair and former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai and Rastriya Prajatantra Party (Nepal) chief Kamal Thapa, among others, have raised similar concerns in the past.

Arrested on October 18 from the RSP office in Kathmandu, Lamichhane has already spent 51 days in custody. On Sunday, the Kaski District Court granted permission to the police to hold Lamichhane in custody for four more days to continue investigating cooperative fraud, organised crime, and money laundering allegations against him.

This is the latest remand extension, following previous approvals of six, seven, ten, thirteen, and fifteen days for police to conduct inquiries.

Alongside Lamichhane, the court extended the remand for former DIG Chhabilal Joshi, Leela Pachhai, and Ram Bahadur Khanal, who face similar charges.

Lamichhane and Rai have been accused of misappropriating Rs142.9 million from Supreme Cooperative and diverting it to Gorkha Media Network Pvt Ltd. Investigations indicate Lamichhane had borrowed Rs19.6 million in personal loans from the cooperative.

Further probes revealed that Gorkha Media Network’s vice chairman, Joshi, took an additional Rs24.5 million loan, which was transferred to Gorkha Media’s Global IME Bank account. Records show Supreme Cooperative’s manager, Sagar KC, authorised a loan voucher for Lamichhane, with Roshani Gurung allegedly moving funds into Gorkha Media’s account. Gurung has since been released on bail, while Cooperative chairman Om Prakash Gurung remains in custody.

An investigation into Supreme Cooperative revealed that Rs780 million of members’ deposits had been diverted to other organisations. Along with cooperative frauds, Lamichhane is being investigated on organised crime and money laundering.