Court releases Rabi Lamichhane on Rs 6 million bail in Swarnalaxmi Cooperative fraud case

Kathmandu / Jan 15: The court has ordered the release of Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) Chairman Rabi Lamichhane, on a bail of Rs 6 million in the Swarnalaxmi Multipurpose Cooperative fraud case.

Judge Madhav Adhikari’s bench at the Kathmandu District Court issued the order after the detention hearing. With this, Lamichhane can now defend the case while staying outside custody.

On Wednesday, Senior Advocates Sushil Panta and Raman Shrestha presented arguments on Lamichhane’s behalf. Advocates Suraj Basnet and Rajendra Prasad Sidhai also supported him with their arguments.

After their arguments, Ramhari Sharma Kafle, Chief of the District Government Attorney’s Office, Khadindra Raj Katwal, District Attorney, and Ganesh Kumar Sharma, Assistant Attorney, argued on behalf of the complainant.

Senior Advocates Surendra Bhandari and Dinesh Tripathi also argued on behalf of the victims. Similarly, Lamichhane expressed his views for about a minute.

After his release on bail from the Kaski District Court, Lamichhane appeared in court last Sunday, initiating the statement and detention hearing.

Police investigations revealed that Rs 57.9 million of depositors’ savings was misappropriated from the Swarnalaxmi Multipurpose Cooperative through the Gorkha Media Network. A claim had been filed to recover the amount from Lamichhane who was Managing Director at the media outlet.