Victim's family asks prez to help implement SC verdict

THT ONLINE

KATHMANDU: Family members of Ujjwal Kumar Shrestha, a local resident of Okhaldhunga, who was killed by former rebel leader Bal Krishna Dhungel in 1998, during the time of insurgency, presented a memorandum to President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav in Sheetal Niwas on Tuesday, asking not to grant pardon to the convicted murderer. Dhungel is elected member of the Constituent Assembly from the UCPN-Maoist.

In the memo, they demanded from the President the immediate implementation of the Supreme Court verdict on the case which had slapped the Maoist CA member Dhungel with a 20-year jail term and confiscation of his assets.

Responding to the demands, President Dr. Yadav suggested that the Shrestha family exert more pressure on the government and Prime Minister for the implementation of the court verdict.

The bereaved family took to the President after the Maoist party sought presidential pardon to Dhungel saying the incident took place during the insurgency and the upholding of the conviction was a violation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. If granted, the presidential pardon will reprieve the sentence.

Following a series of meetings with government officials for the implementation of the SC verdict, the family met the President today as a last resort.

Earlier they had met the Prime Minister and Home Minister for the same but they could not get the requisite support.

Speaking with reporters after the meeting outside the presidential office, Sabitri Shrestha, the sister of the victim said, “We are really disappointed by the President as he expressed his inability to work towards the implementation of the verdict.” She also added, “We have been denied justice”.

On January 3, the Supreme Court had convicted Dhungel of murder and also slapped a 20-year jail term with confiscation of property.

The apex court had forwarded the text of its January 3 verdict on September 5 to Okhaldhunga court for prompt execution of the verdict with a 20-year jail term for Dhungel and confiscation of his property for killing Ujjwal Shrestha.

Earlier the Okhaldhunga District Court had slapped a life term against Dhungel but the Rajbiraj Appellate Court had overturned the verdict of Okhaldhunga District Court and gave a clean chit to him. After the Rajbiraj Appellate Court verdict the government had moved the apex court, stating that the appellate court verdict was against the existing criminal law of the nation.

Dhungel had also served a six-year sentence when he was primarily convicted by the Okhaldhunga Court, but was released following the Rajbiraj Appeal Court verdict.