The Kathmandu District Court has granted permission to the police to keep lawmaker Maya Rai, who was arrested in connection with the Swarnalaxmi Cooperative savings fraud case, in custody and investigate her for three more days.
A bench of Judge Ishwari Prasad Bhandari on Sunday extended Rai’s custody by three days, said Superintendent of Police Apil Raj Bohara at the District Police Range, Kathmandu.
A team from the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office arrested Rai, a Nepali Congress lawmaker from Bhojpur under the proportional representation system, from Kapan, Budhanilkantha, on Saturday.
Rai is accused of misappropriating savings of Swarnalaxmi Cooperative.
According to SP Bohara, police have begun further investigation against Rai on charges of organized crime and cooperative fraud.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Hari Khatiwada, an investigation officer at the District Police Range, wrote to Speaker Devraj Ghimire on Sunday, informing him that lawmaker Rai has been arrested and is under investigation for cooperative fraud and organized crime.
Rai served as joint secretary of the Kalimati-based Swarnalaxmi Cooperative from November 20, 2017, to September 7, 2019.
On January 13, the District Government Attorney’s Office (DGAO), Kathmandu, filed a case at the Kathmandu District Court naming 39 defendants including Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) President Rabi Lamichhane.
The DGAO demanded recovery of NPR 1.19 billion in damages from the defendants.
It, however, did not name Rai as a defendant at the time citing incomplete details of her three generations.
Lamichhane was released on a bail of Rs 6 million in the case.
The police and government attorney faced criticism for allegedly granting Rai immunity. Subsequently, the government attorney instructed the police to investigate Rai.
Following the directive, the police obtained an arrest warrant for Rai from the Kathmandu District Court. But they took a long time to arrest her.
