KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the release of Deep Basnyat, a former secretary involved in the Lalita Niwas land case, on bail of Rs 500,000, Friday.

Hearing the habeas corpus writ filed by Basnyat, a joint bench of Justices Ishwar Prasad Khatiwada and Ananda Mohan Bhattarai ordered to release him on bail. The justices ruled that Basnyat’s detention, given his health, was inhumane and unwarranted in the face of immediate evidence.

Basnyat, stating he is 69 years old with a heart condition and COVID infection, filed a habeas corpus writ petition at the SC on April 30 against Special Court’s December 12, 2020, order to keep him behind bars for a hearing in the Lalita Niwas land grab scandal.

The Commission on Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) had filed a corruption case at the Special Court against Basnyat on February 5, 2020, as he was then incumbent secretary of the then Ministry of Physical Infrastructure when the ownership of the land of Lalita Niwas was transferred into individual names.