Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Kathmandu District Court has convicted 23 individuals, including former Deputy Prime Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, former Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand, and former Home Secretary Tek Narayan Pandey, in connection with the fake Bhutanese refugee scam.
A single bench of Judge Tej Bahadur Khadka delivered the verdict on Tuesday.
The Kathmandu District Government Attorney’s Office had filed a charge sheet against 30 individuals, including Rayamajhi, Khand, and Pandey, on charges of fraud, forgery, offenses against the state, and organized crime in May, 2023.
Seven of those charge-sheeted—Ram Sharan KC, Tank Kumar Gurung, Sanjeev Rayamajhi, Pratik Thapa, Laxmi Maharjan, Keshav Tuladhar, and Ashish Budhathoki—have been acquitted.
Rayamajhi has been convicted on charges of offenses against the state, fraud and organized crime. Similarly, Khand has been found guilty as an accomplice in these offenses.
Likewise, Bhutanese refugee leader Tek Nath Rizal has been convicted for forgery of official documents, fraud and organized crime, as well as for acting as an accomplice in offenses against the state.
The district court has also convicted Sanu Bhandari and Keshav Dulal, identified as key masterminds in the case, on charges of forging government documents, fraud, organized crime, and offenses against the state.
