Supreme Court Orders Review of Plea Against Withdrawal of Charges in Rabi Lamichhane Cooperative Fraud Case

Kathmandu. The Supreme Court has ordered that the writ petition against the withdrawal of the chargesheet in the organized crime and money laundering case filed alongside the cooperative fraud case involving Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) Chairman Rabi Lamichhane be presented before a full bench. A bench comprising Supreme Court Justices Binod Sharma and Abdul Aziz Muslim ordered that the writ be presented before a full bench.

Attorney General Savita Bhandari had directed the District Government Attorney's Office to amend the cooperative fraud, organized crime, and money laundering cases pending in various districts against Lamichhane. Lamichhane has been named as an accused in the cases of fraud, money laundering, and organized crime in the Suryadarshan Cooperative of Kaski, Supreme Cooperative of Rupandehi, Swarnalakshmi Cooperative of Kathmandu, and Sano Paila Cooperative of Parsa.

However, the government attorney's office in Chitwan had decided not to make him an accused in the money laundering and organized crime charges. A case had already been registered against GB alias Gitendra Babu Rai and others in the Suryadarshan Cooperative of Kaski.

Initially, only the cooperative fraud case was filed against them. But when the case was filed against Rabi Lamichhane and others, the charges of money laundering and organized crime were added against them. Before the House of Representatives election held on Falgun 21, he was released after depositing the amount he was liable to pay as compensation.

Lamichhane, who was released after depositing NPR 2 crore 74 lakh 84 thousand corresponding to his share of the compensation, is trying to secure relief from the case if the other two charges are withdrawn, even if it means returning the depositors' money.

Lamichhane was released after depositing bail amounts of NPR 65 lakh in Suryadarshan Cooperative, NPR 60 lakh in Swarnalakshmi, NPR 1 crore in Supreme Cooperative, NPR 54 lakh in Sahara Chitwan, and NPR 1 crore in Sano Paila Cooperative.

Senior Advocate Dinesh Tripathi, law students Ayush Badal, and Yuvraj Poudel had filed the writ petition against the decision of the Attorney General's Office.  

In the seven-page 'Comment and Order' endorsed by Attorney General Bhandari on Poush 30, the District Government Attorney's Offices were directed to proceed only with the cooperative fraud case against Lamichhane and drop the other two serious charges.