BUTWAL: Former Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane is set to appear in court again today as part of the ongoing hearing on his remand in a cooperative fraud case.
On Thursday, the government prosecutors concluded their arguments at the Rupandehi District Court.
However, the hearing remains incomplete as arguments from two lawyers representing the victims are still pending, necessitating Lamichhane’s presence today.
Lamichhane, who is also the chair of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, first appeared before the Rupandehi District Court on Wednesday after being accused of involvement in a fraud case related to Supreme Savings and Credit Cooperative.
He was released on bail under the responsibility of his wife, Nikita Poudel, and his legal counsel, with the condition of appearing in court as required.
The cooperative is accused of misappropriating Rs 861.8 million from 1,831 depositors. While the initial case was filed in April, Lamichhane was included in a supplementary complaint later.
According to the police, Rs 142.9 million from the cooperative was transferred to Gorkha Media Network Pvt. Ltd., and Rs 20 million was taken as a loan under Lamichhane’s name, leading to the charges against him.
Previously, Lamichhane had posted bail of Rs 6.5 million in Kaski and Rs 6 million in Kathmandu for similar allegations. Following the hearing in Butwal, he is also expected to appear in courts in Chitwan and Parsa, where additional arrest warrants have been issued against him.
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