Following an order from the Kathmandu District Court, Rabi Lamichhane, Chairman of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, was released on bail on Wednesday, January 15.

The ruling was issued by a single bench of Judge Madhav Prasad Adhikari, who set Lamichhane's bail at Rs 6 million in connection with a case involving the embezzlement of funds at the Kathmandu-based Swarnalaxmi Cooperative.

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Earlier, on January 5, the District Government Attorney’s Office, Kathmandu, filed a case against Lamichhane and 38 individuals at the Kathmandu District Court. The charges include cooperative fraud and organized crime, seeking the recovery of Rs 1.19 billion from the accused.

Besides Lamichhane, key defendants in the case include Chhabilal Joshi, former vice-chairman of Gorkha Media Pvt. Ltd.; Gitendra Babu (GB) Rai, Chairman of Swarnalaxmi Cooperative; Vice-Chairman Devendra Babu Rai; Treasurer Kumar Ramtel; and Secretary Iran Lama, among others.

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Lamichhane was arrested on October 18, 2024, from his party office in Kathmandu. He was transferred to Pokhara, Kaski, for an investigation into alleged financial irregularities at the Surya Darshan Cooperative.

On December 22, the District Government Attorney’s Office, Kaski, filed a chargesheet against Lamichhane and 30 others at the Kaski District Court. The allegations include cooperative fraud for all accused, organized crime for 19 individuals, and money laundering for four, with Lamichhane facing all three charges.

Read: Recovery of Funds from Cooperatives Unlikely as their Liabilities Exceed Assets

Last Thursday, January 9, Lamichhane was released on Rs 6.5 million bail after 84 days in custody.

Lamichhane, a television personality-turned-politician and former deputy prime minister and home minister, faces ongoing investigations into cooperative fraud allegations in Butwal, Chitwan, and Parsa as well. His suspension as a lawmaker representing Chitwan Constituency-2 followed the filing of charges in the Kaski case.

Lamichhane appeared before the Kathmandu court on Sunday.

This news has been updated.

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