On August 23, 2011, Kanchanpur District Court filed a case again on the murder of journalist Prakash Thakuri from Mahendranagar, a far western district of Nepal as per the Supreme Court (SC) mandamus to this regard.
The SC had said in the mandamus on February 23, 2011 that the crimes committed after the Comprehensive Peace Accord could not be let off in the name of political case.
The District Court had received entire proceeding documents of the case sent by the SC following the mandamus order.
The case filed by victim's wife Janaki Thakuri at the District Police Office Kanchanpur on November 9, 2007, claiming that cadres of UCPN-Maoist had abducted her husband from their rented apartment at Bhasi, Mahendranagar was withdrawn by then government led by UCPN-Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' on October 28, 2009, dubbing the case of political nature.
Janaki had lodged a complaint after the husband was disappeared from Kanchanpur since July 5, 2007, claiming that the Maoist cadres-Pomlal Sharma, Jagat Kshetry, Chandrakanta Bhatta and four others were involved in his abduction and disappearance.
After the government withdrew the case saying it was of political nature, Federation of Nepali Journalists, and Advocacy Forum had filed the writ petition in the Supreme Court making defendants to the Kanchanpur District Court, Home Ministry, Ministry of Peace and Reconstruction, and the Office of Kanchanpur District Attorney two years back.
Though late, filing the case again by the District Court against the abductors of journalist Prakash Thakuri has created hope with the victim family that the guilty ones would be brought to book.
Freedom Forum hails Kanchanpur District Court's initiative to file the case again and hopes the accused ones would be brought to book thereby helping to check the rising impunity in the country.
For more information,
Freedom Forum
monitoring@freedomforum.org.np
01-4102030/ 4102022