Samir Man Basnet, the mastermind behind the murder of the then chairman of Federation of Contractors’ Associations of Nepal (FCAN) Sharad Gauchan, and Amar Bahadur Rana (also known as Kale) have been sentenced to life imprisonment over Gauchan’s murder.
Announcing the quantum of punishment on Wednesday, a single bench of Kathmandu District Court Judge Keshav Prasad Ghimire sentenced Basnet and Rana to life in prison, according to the court's information officer Deepak Dahal.
Gauchan was murdered in broad daylight near Shantinagar, Kathmandu, on October 9, 2017.
The court had found Basnet and others guilty of murder on June 27.
Som Tamang (aka Lopchan Lama) and Maya Sherchan, who were also arrested in connection with Gauchan’s murder, have been sentenced to prison for 15 years and 10 years, respectively. Sherchan has also been fined Rs 60,000 on weapons-related offense.
Dhanraj Yonghang, Shyam Bahadur Gumbi (aka Gumbi), Roshan Budhathoki (aka Kaledari), and Rajeev Tamang (aka Rajeev Syangtan) have been sentenced to five years each.
The bench has, however, scrapped the case against Basanta Pun and Manoj Budha Magar (aka Manoj Pun) as they have already died, said information officer Dahal.
Seven defendants in the case are still absconding. According to Dahal, the bench has adjourned the case against them but the case will move ahead again once they are arrested. The absconding accused are Ganga Prasad Limbu, Ajay Thapa, Samikala Rai, Prabesh Nayab, Suja Thaksu Baji, Sudheer Kumar Shah and Pradeep Kumar Jha.
The court has acquitted seven others in the case. Those acquitted are Prakash Budhathoki, Santosh Gurung, Shivaji Mahato Kamakar, Surya Bahadur Baji, Raj Kumar Shah, Mukesh Kumar Pandey and Shyam Gupta.
