KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has upheld the Butwal bench of the High Court’s decision to detain Rastriya Swatantra Party Chairman and former Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane in connection with the Supreme Cooperative fraud case.
A joint bench of Justices Nahakul Subedi and Balkrishna Dhakal dismissed the habeas corpus petition filed by Lamichhane’s wife, Nikita Poudel, which had demanded his release from custody.
With this ruling, Lamichhane will remain in detention until the Rupandehi District Court delivers a final verdict on the fraud case. He will only be released if acquitted of all charges by the District Court.
Lamichhane was originally detained following a High Court ruling that overturned an earlier decision by the Rupandehi District Court, which had not ordered his detention.
Challenging that High Court order, Lamichhane had filed a habeas corpus petition at the Supreme Court, arguing that his detention was unlawful. He had also submitted a separate petition seeking to annul the High Court’s decision.
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