The Kathmandu District Court has issued an arrest warrant against CPN lawmaker Paarbat Gurung.
An attempt to murder case was lodged on May 12 against Gurung who was elected to the House of Representatives (HoR) from Dolakha on a ticket of the then CPN-UML. Registrar at the court Ananda Shrestha told Setopati that an arrest warrant was issued on September 25 as he did not report to the court even after the case was lodged.
Grung has received the arrest warrant including a 35-day deadline on September 25. He will not be able to defend himself if he does not report to the court within 35 days of September 25. He can also be arrested by the police.
Bir Dhwaj Khadka had complained with the police that he was attacked in April 2017 under instruction of Gurung. The case seems to have been filed after investigation on the complaint around two years after the incident.
Gurung, on his part, conceded that he has received the 35-day notice. "Cases against Maoist leaders in Dolakha were lodged when Kul Bahadur Tamang was murdered by the then Maoists in the district before the local election in May 2017. A retaliatory complaint was filed against me in Kathmandu accusing me of orchestrating attack on Khadka," Gurung told Setopati. "The Maoists and Nepali Congress (NC) were in power then. The complaint was lodged in revenge accusing that the attack was carried out under my instruction."
He claimed that complainant Khadka himself is a fugitive criminal. The case against Khadka about Tamang murder is sub judice in Dolakha District Court. The Tamang family had filed a case accusing 37 persons including Khadka, Bishal Khadka and Devi Khadka.
"The complaint against me was lodged in capacity of a common citizen and not a lawmaker. The complaint apparently was lodged saying that the attack was under my instruction," Gurung added.
