KATHMANDU: The hearing in the high-profile Lalita Niwas Land Grab case concluded on Sunday, bringing the legal proceedings one step closer to a resolution.

Deepak Dahal, the court’s information officer, confirmed the closure of the debate in the courtroom presided over by Kathmandu District Court Judge Bholanath Dhakal on Sunday.

The case, initially filed by the Public Prosecutor’s Office Kathmandu on August 10th, revolves around allegations of government document manipulation.

Notably, the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of Nepal Police has implicated 289 individuals as defendants in this case, with the names of 21 deceased defendants also included in the filing.

Within the courtroom, a total of 50 lawyers passionately represented the defendants, while an additional 8 attorneys advocated on behalf of the public prosecutor’s office.

During the rebuttal phase, only two government lawyers presented their arguments.

With the conclusion of the custody hearings, the bench is now poised to render its decision on whether to detain the defendants further or grant them release on bail. Information Officer Dahal has confirmed that the court is diligently preparing to issue its verdict later today.