KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has issued a show-cause order in a habeas corpus petition filed seeking the release of CPN-UML Vice Chair Bishnu Paudel, effectively allowing authorities to continue investigating him in custody for the time being.
A single bench of Justice Shrikanta Paudel issued the order on Thursday after hearing the petition.
The petition was filed by Paudel’s wife, arguing that there was no sufficient legal basis for his arrest and requesting that he be allowed to face legal proceedings while remaining outside detention.
Paudel was arrested on Monday from Shubha Hotel in Surkhet by police acting on a letter from the Department of Money Laundering Investigation. He was then transported to Kathmandu for further legal proceedings.
The Supreme Court has asked the government to provide a written explanation justifying the arrest. The Department of Money Laundering Investigation, the authority responsible for ordering the arrest, has also been directed to submit a written response outlining the legal grounds for the action.
The court said it will take further decisions after reviewing the responses in the next hearing.
According to the petition, there was no strong legal basis for detaining Paudel, and it demanded that he be allowed to defend the case without being held in custody.
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