POKHARA: Kaski District Court on Wednesday handed the first full life sentence to 27-year-old Kusum Paudel convicted of rape and murder of 10-year-old Shreeya Sunar of Pokhara.

A single bench of Justice Yogendra Prasad Shah passed down the verdict on the case registered by Nepal Police on October 8 as per the recently endorsed Criminal (Code) Act, 2017, informed Court Registrar Jagannath Paudel.

10-year-old Shreeya Sunar’s body was found in a bush some 300 metres away from her maternal home on September 23. The body bore injuries on the neck, head, stomach and other parts which according to preliminary police investigation had been caused by stones.

Paudel who was arrested a day after the incident confessed to authorities that he dragged the minor to the nearby bush and raped her before strangling her to death. Further, he dumped her body and again pelted the body with stones to confirm that she was dead.

As per Clause 41 of the Criminal (Code) Act, 2017, Paudel now must remain in prison for the rest of his natural life, the registrar informed.

Apart from defining general life-term as 25-year-period, the Act also incorporates provisions that identify seven criminal conducts -- extreme torture murder, hijacking an aircraft or bombing aircraft to kill, poisoning food or drink to kill, genocide or racial killing and rape and murder -- as liable for full life imprisonment.

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(Translated/Edited By Prahlad Rijal)