UML lawmaker Koiri acquitted in Thaman BK murder case

A single bench of District Judge Uddhab Prasad Bhattarai issued the order on Thursday.

While Koiri received a reprieve, the district court sentenced seven others, including Madhesh Province Assembly Member Abhiram Sharma, to life imprisonment, according to Mahendra Jha, the information officer of the Mahottari District Court.

Sharma is the parliamentary party leader of the Loktantrik Samajbadi Party in the province assembly.

The remaining individuals receiving life imprisonment include Sanjaya Kumar Sah, Pradip Sah Majhi, Mohan Thakur, Dharmendra Raya, Ram Shankar Mishra, and Suresh Pandey. Mishra is the former mayor of Jaleshwar Municipality.

The charges stemmed from an incident during the 2015 Madhes movement on September 11 when Koiri and his supporters allegedly dragged injured Assistant Sub Inspector Thaman BK from an ambulance and killed him. Initially, Koiri and 27 others were charged with murder, but Koiri was released on a bail of Rs 200,000 by the Mahottari District Court. Nineteen others are still on the run.

Expressing dissatisfaction with the district court’s verdict, BK’s family had contested the decision at the Janakpur High Court. The higher court overturned the district court’s ruling, instructing the police to keep Koiri in custody until the final verdict is reached. But Koiri has been evading authorities.