CHITWAN, March 26: The Chitwan District Court has acquitted three accused in the mysterious death case of Salin Pokhrel, a student of Ekata Shishu Niketan Boarding School in Ratnanagar Municipality-10.
The Chitwan District Court dismissed the case, filed on charges of abetting suicide, on Monday, stating that the claims were insufficient. Following Judge Dhurba Kumar Dhakal's verdict, the school principal and two others have been released.
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On the morning of February 24, 2024, authorities found 14-year-old Salin Pokhrel hanging in her school hostel room. After the initial investigation, the deceased's relatives filed a complaint regarding the cause of death. However, on March 17, 2024, the Chitwan District Government Attorney's Office filed a case against three individuals on charges of abetting suicide.
The court acquitted the accused, finding the evidence presented by the Government Attorney's Office insufficient. The court's registrar, Bishnu Prasad Acharya, stated that the case was dismissed due to a lack of evidence to confirm abetting suicide.
The post-mortem report confirmed that the deceased had not been sexually abused. Following the incident, then-Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal instructed the Ministry of Home Affairs to investigate the matter.
In the case, the school principal, Balhari Devkota (60), vice-principal Kiran Bahadur Adhikari (40), and hostel warden Kamal Sharma Paudel (48) were named as defendants. Among them, one was the vice-principal and the other was the warden.