Cricketer Sandeep Lamichhane, who was convicted of rape by the Kathmandu District Court, will be allowed to fight the case from outside the jail.
Lamichhane had reached the Patan High Court on Thursday to file an appeal against the District Court’s decision.
Deputy registrar Tirtha Raj Bhattarai, who is also the spokesperson of the High Court, said that the permission has been granted to Lamichhane to fight the case from outside the jail.
“He got the permission to fight the case from outside the jail as per Civil Code 2074,” Bhattarai said.
The Kathmandu District Court on January 10 had slapped on cricketer Sandip Lamichhane an eight-year jail term along with Rs 500,000 as fine and compensation after finding him guilty of rape..
On Dec 29 last year, a single bench of judge Sishiraj Dhakal had issued a verdict in consonance with Section 219 (3) (e) of Civil Code 2074, finding Lamichhane guilty of raping ‘Gaushala 26’.
The verdict has established that the accused “raped the victim taking advantage of her poor economic condition” and convicted him as per clause 219—1, 2 and 3 (d)—of the Criminal Code Procedure.
The case started unraveling after Lamichhane’s arrest from Tribhuvan International Airport on Oct 6 last year, on the basis of a complaint accusing him of raping a minor on Sept 6 the same year.
Citing statements from both the parties, the CCTV footage and an eyewitness account, the verdict states that ‘Gaushala 26’ and Lamichhane stayed at a hotel room in Kathmandu after their return from a journey to Nagarkot, adding that Lamichhane had raped her in the room.
