KATHMANDU, May 25: The body of Bharat Raj Upreti, former Justice at the Supreme Court, has been handed over to the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) as per his wish.
Upreti, 65, committed suicide at his home Sunday night, issuing a suicide note.
The last rites of Upreti were performed by cremating his figurine made of the kusa grass as per the Hindu rituals, according to Chet Raj Upreti, his younger brother.
In the suicide note he wrote, the former Justice Upreti stated that he took his own life out of his own will and asked the family members to hand over the body to the TUTH, and if TUTH turned it down, to another teaching hospital. He had also written in his suicide note to provide Rs 500,000 equivalent to the expenses for his obsequies rituals to the earthquake victims, senior advocate Ramnath Mainali said.
Upreti, who had worked as the temporary Justice at the apex court, had resigned before the termination of his tenure after not being granted a promotion to the post of permanent judge.
Before becoming a Justice at the Supreme Court, he worked as the legal advisor at the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank and other institutions.
He was jobless after his retirement after it was constitutionally stipulated that a person who has served as the Justice could not hold any post except an office-bearer of the National Human Rights Commission.
According to Mainali, Upreti in the suicide note mentioned that he has been dealt a blow after the Nepal Bar Association barred him from engaging in 'chamber practice' as well.
NBA vice-president Tikaram Bhattarai said the Bar was shocked by Upreti's death and would discuss and analyse the topics mentioned in his suicide note, later.
Upreti was born in Linkhu VDC of Sindhupalchok district and had been living in Gyaneshwar, Kathmandu. He leaves behind a wife, a son and two daughters. RSS