KAILALI, March 6: The Kailali District Court on Wednesday sentenced Lawmaker Resham Chaudhary among eleven others with life imprisonment, who were accused of masterminding the Tikapur massacre in August 2015 in which seven police personnel and a little child were killed. 

A single bench of Judge Parshuram Bhattarai made the verdict on Wednesday afternoon. The court also slapped three years imprisonment on Tharu activist Laxman Tharu and 11 others. 

Chaudhary from Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal (RJP-N), had taken an oath of office and secrecy almost 13 months after his election to the House of Representatives on January 3, 2019, while his case was still sub-judice in the court. Chaudhary was the accused main mastermind in the Tikapur incident that occurred on August 24, 2015.

In the incident, seven security personnel including SSP Laxman Neupane and a two-year-old had lost their lives in a clash between Tharuhat agitators and security personnel.

Chaudhary was featured in the most wanted list of Nepal Police. He had presented himself at Kailali District Court on February 27, 2018, refuting the charges leveled against him.

Chaudhary had taken oath 10 days after Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli sought a week's time to address Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal's demands. Then, RJP-N had threatened to withdraw support from the government if its demands - constitution amendment and swearing-in of jailed lawmaker Resham Chaudhary and withdrawal of court cases and release of prisoners - were not met. 

Chaudhary had been elected to the HoR through the first past the post system from Kailali-1 in the parliamentary elections held on December 7, 2017. 

 
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