Two receive life imprisonment for Gauchan’s murder

KATHMANDU: The Kathmandu District Court has sentenced gangster Samir Man Singh Basnet to life imprisonment for masterminding the murder of construction entrepreneur Sharad Kumar Gauchan.

A single bench of Judge Keshav Prasad Ghimire pronounced the verdict on Wednesday.

The court has also handed life sentences to Ambar Bahadur Rana, also known as Kale. Similarly, Som Tamang, also known as Lopsang Lama, who fired the shots at Gauchan, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison. Additionally, Maya Sherchan has received a 10-year prison sentence and has been ordered to pay a fine of Rs 60,000.

According to Deepak Dahal, the information officer of the Kathmandu District Court, Dhan Raj Yonghang, Shyam Bahadur Gumbi, Roshan Budhathoki, and Rajiv Syangtang have each been sentenced to five years imprisonment. “The charges against Basant Thebe and Manoj Budha Magar have been dismissed as they have already passed away,” Dahal stated.

The district court has put the cases against seven fugitives – Ganga Prasad Limbu, Ajay Thapa, Samikala Rai, Prabesh Naib, Sujathaksu Baji, Sudhir Kumar Sah, and Pradeep Kumar Jha – on hold.

Likewise, Prakash Budhathoki, Santosh Gurung, Shivaji Mahato Kamkar, Surya Bahadur Baji, Raj Kumar Sah, Mukesh Kumar Pandey, and Shyam Gupta have been acquitted.

The district court delivered its verdict in the case on June 27.

Gauchan was murdered in Baneshwar, Kathmandu, on October 9, 2017.