The Rupandehi District Court has declined to immediately withdraw organized crime and money laundering cases in which Rabi Lamichhane, chairman of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), is among the accused.
Although the Office of the Attorney General had decided to withdraw the organized crime and money laundering charges against Lamichhane and other defendants, the court ordered that any application related to the decision be submitted only after the Supreme Court issues a final ruling on a related writ petition.
Krishna Prasad Paudel, registrar of the Rupandehi District Court, said the court has instructed that the application seeking implementation of the Attorney General’s decision should not be processed immediately, as the matter is currently under consideration by the Supreme Court.
According to Paudel, a bench of District Judge Shyamalal Ghimire issued the order on Magh 6, noting that a writ petition concerning the same issue has been filed at the Supreme Court and remains sub judice. The court ruled that the application may be presented only after the writ is conclusively resolved.
Attorney General Sabita Bhandari had decided on Poush 30 to withdraw the organized crime and money laundering cases against Lamichhane and other accused individuals. Cases against Lamichhane have been filed in the district courts of Rupandehi, Kaski, Kathmandu, and Chitwan, involving allegations of cooperative fraud, organized crime, and money laundering.
While deciding to withdraw the organized crime and money laundering cases, Attorney General Bhandari maintained the cooperative fraud cases. Following the decision, Yuvraj Paudel, also known as “Safal,” filed a writ petition at the Supreme Court on Magh 2, challenging the Attorney General’s move.
