Kathmandu, October 8

The Office of the Attorney General has stated that the report made public by the Ministry of Home Affairs about investigation into Nirmala Panta’s rape and murder can only be taken as ‘information’ and not as ‘ an evidence’ to file cases in the court.

OAG Spokesperson Sanjiv Raj Regmi said the probe committee had recommended probe against the Bam sisters and suspended chief of Kanchanpur police Dilliraj Bista, but it was the duty of police to conduct investigation against accused/suspects.

According to Regmi, police lapses  at the crime scene cannot be treated as a  criminal offence as per the old General Code which applied the day when Nirmala Panta was raped and murdered. However, if any lapses occurred after August 17, when the new penal code came into force, they could be treated as criminal offence.

Regmi said under the new law, acts of destruction of evidence, falsifying of evidence to secure somebody’s conviction or tampering evidence to secure somebody’s acquittal and malicious investigation were criminal offences.

Regmi said as per Section 189 of the Criminal Procedure Code,  malicious investigation would be investigated by a committee of three officials of Nepal Police, OAG and the home ministry and in case a police official was found guilty, the OAG would book the cop in question.

Kanchanpur police had arrested mentally ill Dilip Singh Bista on August 20 and had tried to frame him in the case. The Mainali-led panel has stated that police personnel involved in ‘arresting’ Bista and ‘making him admit the crime’ should be questioned and face administrative action. Bista, however, was released after his DNA did not match the profile of Nirmala’s vaginal swab.

Spokesperson for Nepal Police Shailesh Thapa Kshetry said his office would consult the OAG before prosecuting police personnel accused of botching up the probe. He said cops could face administrative punishment -- demotion or termination -- depending on the severity of the lapses. “But the action will be taken as per our own findings and not according to the probe panel’s report. But these reports can be taken as references,” Kshetry added.