KATHMANDU, May 18: The High Court Tulsipur has once again postponed hearing the petitions filed by Rastriya Swatantra Party Chairperson Rabi Lamichhane and former DIG Chhabilal Joshi, extending the delay in resolving their cases.
Both filed petitions challenging the orders of the District Court in the Supreme Cooperative fraud case. Additionally, Lamichhane’s wife, Nikita Paudel, submitted a request for an urgent hearing on bail. However, the court has paused the bail request, and all petitions have been grouped together for joint consideration.
CJ Rana assigns hearings on all types of cases at SC
The petitions are currently under consideration by a bench comprising Justices Dr Manokumar Sharma and Sunil Kumar Pokharel. Since last week, the court has repeatedly postponed the hearings, citing the petitions are not yet ready for a final decision, which means procedural or documentation issues remain unresolved.
Justice Pokharel had previously worked as a lawyer for Lamichhane in a citizenship and passport case before becoming a Justice. Because of this prior relationship, his bench has not heard the current petitions to avoid any conflict of interest.
In the Supreme Cooperative fraud case, Lamichhane was initially released on bail by the Rupandehi District Court after paying Rs 10 million but was later taken into custody for further investigation based on the High Court’s decision. Chhabilal Joshi also remains in custody under a district court order. The High Court so far has upheld the lower court’s rulings in response to their petitions.
With these procedural delays, the legal process remains stalled, and the case’s final resolution continues to be postponed.
