KATHMANDU, Feb 4: The Supreme Court (SC) has sentenced four people involved in a gang rape to 10 years in prison each. A division bench of SC justices Hari Prasad Phuyal and Sharanga Subedi upheld the verdicts of the district and high courts in sentencing the men who gang-raped a woman in Kathmandu seven years ago. The full text of the SC’s verdict issued on October 25 was made public on Sunday.
The incident occurred on May 12, 2018. The unsuspecting woman was walking on a secluded path in the forest of Swayambhu, Kathmandu when she was gang-raped by the four men who were later identified as Raju Pariyar, Ban Bahadur Sunuwar, Urgen Tamang and Surendra Nagarkoti. The victim has been named ‘Swayambhu (Dha)’ to protect her identity. Following the incident, the victim filed a police case. Following an investigation, government authorities registered a rape case at the Kathmandu District Court against the four individuals.
The district court sentenced the four individuals to ten years in prison each. Additionally, they were ordered to pay a compensation of Rs 25,000 to the victim.
Dissatisfied with the district court's decision on January 13, 2019, two of the accused had filed an appeal in the Patan High Court. The high court upheld the district court's decision on August 13, 2019 stating that the evidence presented by the police proved their involvement in the gang rape beyond any doubt.
Based on the complaint filed by the victim, the police initially arrested Ban Bahadur and Urgen. Upon interrogation, they revealed that Raju and Surendra were also involved in the rape. Based on the statements made before the court, the victim's physical examination report, and the forensic examination report, the court concluded that the woman had been gang-raped.
“It cannot be assumed that any woman has consented to sexual intercourse with four men simultaneously. The evidence confirm that she was gang raped,” the court’s ruling states.
The Supreme Court also upheld the verdicts of the lower courts.