New Investigation Committee Formed for Nirmala Pant Murder Case

Kathmandu. The incident of rape and murder of Nirmala Pant will complete 8 years on Shrawan 10. Pant, from Ultakhama in Bhimdatta Municipality, Kanchanpur, was found dead on Shrawan 10, 2075 BS. Police investigation concluded that she was raped and then murdered. The police have now started a new investigation into Pant's rape and murder from a fresh angle. A committee led by Krishna Pageni, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) from the Crime Investigation Department of the Police Headquarters, has been formed. The committee includes police officers from the Central Investigation Bureau, Provincial Police Office, and the district. Officers from the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) have been continuously investigating the incident. AIG of the Bureau, Dr. Manoj KC, says, 'CIB has been working on this since the beginning.' The police had previously used DNA testing as the primary 'investigation method' to identify the perpetrator in the murder of 13-year-old Nirmala. So far, the police have tested the DNA of 123 people, but the investigation has not yielded results due to the DNA not matching. The police are now proceeding with the investigation using human intelligence methods based on previous reports. The expert committee formed earlier had also concluded that investigation solely through technical methods was not feasible. A police officer involved in the investigation says, 'We are developing human intelligence based on old reports.' A total of 9 committees have been officially formed in the Nirmala Pant case so far. Police Headquarters, CIB, Provincial Police Office, and District Police Office had also informally formed other committees. In Poush 2079 BS, then Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Ravi Lamichhane formed a committee led by then DIG Durga Singh. Durga Singh has now retired as AIG. SSP Kamal Thapa, psychiatrist Dr. Rajesh Dutt, and DSP Hirdendra Raka had conducted long investigations into Pant's case. Bishwas, who was arrested on charges of rape and murder of Pant, was released after his DNA did not match. Police had apprehended and presented Dilip Singh Bishwas 25 days after Nirmala's murder. On Bhadra 26, 2075 BS, the District Court ordered Bishwas to be released on bail, stating there was no basis to confirm his involvement and that his DNA did not match. The current committee has been formed after Durga Singh's committee. According to police officers, the committee led by SSP Pageni is the 9th committee. To investigate Nirmala's case, the Police Headquarters initially sent then DSP Angur GC of CIB to Kanchanpur. On Bhadra 4, 2075 BS, the investigation team led by Angur GC apprehended Dilip Singh Bishwas. GC is currently the SP in Banke. Angur GC and other police officers faced action for allegedly torturing Dilip. Based on the report submitted after a long investigation by a committee led by then Additional Inspector General (AIG) of Police Dhiru Basnyat, cases were filed against the investigation officers. The investigation committee under Basnyat's leadership was formed on Bhadra 14, 2075 BS. Two more committees were formed after Basnyat's committee. The Home Ministry formed a committee led by DNA expert Jeevan Rizal. The Police Headquarters formed a separate review committee under the leadership of then DIG Suraj KC. The review committee formed under KC's leadership on Magh 11, 2076 BS, suggested that the report of Dhiru Basnyat's committee was incorrect. The committee formed under the leadership of DNA expert Jeevan Prasad Rizal on Bhadra 26, 2076 BS, also investigated the incident and provided suggestions. Rizal's committee concluded that there was no semen in Nirmala's vaginal swab and submitted a report stating that the perpetrator could not be identified through DNA testing. The committee led by then SSP Ganesh Chand, while working at the Central Investigation Bureau, also conducted a long investigation in Kanchanpur. Chand has retired as DIG. A committee was formed under the leadership of Joint Secretary Hari Prasad Mainali on Shrawan 6, 2075 BS. The National Human Rights Commission formed a committee on Kartik 27, 2075 BS. According to a CIB official, the Nirmala Pant murder investigation has seen the formation of 9 committees, with the current committee led by SSP Pageni being the 9th. So far, 78 people from 8 police offices have investigated Nirmala's murder. Only from the Central Investigation Bureau, 44 people have investigated the incident. Investigation officers believe that matching DNA is the only option to identify the perpetrator. According to circumstantial evidence, the samples collected for scientific testing must match Nirmala's 'vaginal swab'. The Forensic Science Laboratory has developed 16 characters from the 'vaginal swab'. This test, conducted using the 'Y STR' method, identifies the male lineage. The committee previously formed under the leadership of DNA expert Jeevan Rizal to investigate Nirmala's case suggested using human intelligence in the investigation, stating that the 'autosomal' method should be used for testing. According to Rizal, the 'autosomal' method can identify the specific perpetrator. Rizal's committee acknowledged the presence of male DNA in the 'Y STR' test, stating in its report, 'The presence of male DNA means there is a 'male contributor'.' Rizal's committee concluded that there were problems with the collection of vaginal swabs and suggested investigating using human intelligence rather than DNA testing. However, due to the action taken against 8 police officers in the Nirmala case, investigation officers are hesitant to adopt other methods. Journalist Khem Bhandari was arrested on Asar 18. Social media users have mentioned that he was arrested in connection with the Nirmala case. However, he was arrested based on a court verdict in a defamation case. Kiranraj Bishwas, son of the then SP of Kanchanpur, Dilli Raj Bishwas, had filed a defamation case against him. Journalist Bhandari had published content against Kiran in his media outlets and social media, linking him to Nirmala Pant's incident. Following this, Kiran filed a lawsuit. The Dipayal High Court, Mahendranagar bench, sentenced Bhandari to 1 month and 7 days imprisonment, a fine of 12,100, and compensation of 100,000 on Chaitra 22, 2082 BS. Bhandari has been sent to jail to serve this sentence. He had previously been punished for contempt of court, and the court, considering him a repeat offender, decided not to allow him to pay the equivalent amount of the sentence and instead sent him to jail.