Court order: ‘There is no reasonable basis to believe that Ravi Lamichhane is innocent’

Kathmandu — The Kaski District Court has ordered the release of the then Managing Director of Gorkha Media, Rabi Lamichhane, accused of cooperative fraud, on bail, saying there is no evidence to prove that he is not guilty. Although Lamichhane denied his involvement in the cooperative fraud even when he gave a statement to the court, the court rejected his claim based on the evidence immediately available, demanding a bail of Rs 6.5 million.

In the order issued on Thursday by District Court Judge Nitij Rai of Kaski, the defendant Lamichhane’s single signature was used to transact 814 checks of Gorkha Media Company, that he was an official of Gorkha Media Company, that he had signed some checks before joining Gorkha Media and after leaving the company, and that he had signed checks while holding a responsible position such as Managing Director.
Similarly, the order states that the money of Pokhara’s Surya Darshan Savings and Loan Cooperative Society was invested in Gorkha Media Network from Gitendra Babu Rai’s bank account through Rabi Lamichhane’s account.

The order further states, ‘Since it is seen that the cooperative’s money is coming into the account of the defendant (Lamichhane) and going elsewhere from there, and the interconnection with other defendants and the transactions (businesses) of the bank account, the defendant is not guilty at this time, although there is no reasonable basis to conclude that the defendant is guilty, based on the evidence immediately obtained, and the additional evidence obtained from the above-mentioned evidence will be as determined later, the defendant is ordered to pay a bail of 65,00,000 (sixty-five lakh rupees) in cash or its equivalent or bank guarantee on the basis of Sections 68 and 72 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 2074 BS and be detained on a date and if he does not pay or cannot pay, he shall be sent to the Prison Office, Kaski, for detention with a detention warrant as per Section 80.’

Lamichhane was arrested from Kathmandu on Kartik 2 for cooperative fraud. A case of cooperative fraud has also been registered against him in the Kathmandu District Court.