Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) President Rabi Lamichhane, who was arrested on charges of cooperative fraud and brought to Rupandehi for investigation, has been sent to Pokhara.
Lamichhane was brought to Bhairahawa on Tuesday for investigation into alleged misappropriation of funds of the Butwal-based Supreme Savings and Credit Cooperative.
Police finished recording his statement at 8 PM Thursday, but he was kept overnight at District Police Office, Rupandehi, as the plane that was supposed to take him to Pokhara did not arrive.
According to Superintendent of Police Ranjit Singh Rathore, chief of District Police Office, Rupandehi, Lamichhane was sent to Pokhara on a Yeti Airlines flight at 1:45 PM Friday as he could not be sent in the morning as planned because of bad weather.
Lamichhane was arrested on October 18 on the charge of involvement in the misappropriation of funds of the Pokhara-based Suryadarshan Savings and Credit Cooperative.
Police brought Lamichhane to Bhairahawa for investigation after he was found to have been involved in the misappropriation of Supreme Cooperative’s funds too.
A team of investigating officers including Deputy Superintendent of Police Bijay Raj Pandit, chief of Area Police Office, Butwal, interrogated Lamichhane at the District Government Attorney’s Office for three days.
They questioned him in the office of District Attorney Prem Raj Paudel for about five hours on Tuesday, about eight hours on Wednesday, and from 10:30 AM to 8 PM on Thursday.
Police said that Lamichhane was asked 74 questions related to misappropriation of cooperatives’ funds and Gorkha Media.
When asked how funds were transferred to individuals and Gorkha Media from Supreme Cooperative, Lamichhane said that he had no knowledge of it. He gave the same response to most of the questions, investigating officers who were involved in recording his statement said.
The parliamentary special inquiry committee on cooperative fraud and the police have said in their reports that Rs 19.6 million was transferred to Lamichhane and Rs 142.9 million to Gorkha Media Network, where Lamichhane was managing director, through different individuals from Supreme Cooperative.
