Kathmandu, January 12
After spending slightly over three months behind bars, star cricketer and former national cricket team captain Sandeep Lamichhane will get out on bail tomorrow. The Patan High Court today ordered his release on bail of Rs 2 million.
A joint bench of justices Dhruva Raj Nanda and Ramesh Dhakal today granted Lamichhane, 25, the bail to let him fight the legal battle staying out of jail.
The court granted Lamichhane the bail after it was assured that he would neither contact the girl who accused him of rape nor would he abscond.
Advocate Saroj Ghimire, who is representing Lamichhane, said the court had barred Lamichhane from leaving Nepal. In fact, he shall have to take special permission from District Administration Office even to leave Kathmandu valley. In case he violates any of these restrictions, the police can rearrest him. Moreover, his conversations on mobile phone shall be recorded by investigation officers. Even the media has been barred from commenting on the case and advocates have been told not to share any information with media.
On November 4, Kathmandu District Court had sent him to judicial custody until the final verdict, observing that 'the available prima facie evidences showed that the court could not conclude that he was innocent.' Lamichhane had then moved the high court seeking bail.
KDC had looked into evidences submitted by of victims' counsel, such as CCTV footage of Lamichhane entering Kathmandu Inn, medical report of the victim that mentioned 'tearing of the hymen', statements of hotel employees that matched the accusation made by the victim, messages exchanged by Lamichhane and the victim on Snapchat, and documents police retrieved from the hotel.
The defendants, on the other hand, had argued that there was no proof that Lamichhane had raped the girl and had insisted that Lamichhane spent the night on a table and let the girl sleep on the bed.
On September 6, the girl, who is a minor, along with a guardian - her elder brother - had filed a complaint against Lamichhane at Gaushala Police Circle. She accused him of raping her in Kathmandu Inn, a hotel in Sinamangal, Kathmandu, on the night of August 2.
The girl had alleged that she was raped twice. As per the FIR, Lamichhane even beat her up when she refused to have intercourse.
CCTV footage showed both leaving the hotel early next morning. Lamichhane left for Kenya to participate in the Cricket T-20 series in Nairobi the same day. From there he had travelled to the West Indies to participate in the Caribbean Premier League.
Lamichhane was captain of the national cricket team when he was accused of rape. The Cricket Association of Nepal suspended him from the national squad after an arrest warrant was issued against him.
TIMELINE
• September 6: A 17-year-old girl, along with her elder brother, filed a police complaint accusing Sandeep Lamichhane of raping her on the night of August 2
• September 8: The Kathmandu District Court issued an arrest warrant against him. The same day the Cricket Association of Nepal suspended Lamichhane from the team
• September 9: Lamichhane, who was in the West Indies then taking part in the Caribbean Premier League, wrote on Facebook that he would leave the CPL team, return to Nepal, surrender to police, and seek legal support to clear himself of the charge
• September 11: The Department of Immigration blacklists Lamichhane so as to support police to arrest him at the airport.
• September 25: Lamichhane writes another post on Facebook, claiming that he was mentally disturbed and would soon return to Nepal
• September 26: Nepal Police issues a diffusion notice asking all Interpol member countries to help locate Lamichhane and bring him to Nepal
• October 6: Lamichhane was arrested at Tribhuvan International Airport
• October 10, 13, 19, 23: Lamichhane's hearing continued in the court and the court kept on denying him bail
• October 31: Government attorney files a charge of raping a minor against Lamichhane and demands 10 to 12 years imprisonment
• November 4: Lamichhane was sent to judicial custody until the final verdict in the case
• January 12: Patan High Court orders his release on a bail of Rs 2 million
A version of this article appears in the print on January 13, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
