Top Bahadur Rayamajhi Sentenced to Four Years in Bhutanese Refugee Scam

Former Deputy Prime Minister and CPN-UML leader Top Bahadur Rayamajhi has been sentenced to four years in prison after being convicted in the high-profile fake Bhutanese refugee scam.

The Kathmandu District Court on Tuesday sentenced Rayamajhi to four years' imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 40,000. The verdict was delivered by a single bench of Judge Tej Bahadur Khadka.

Former Home Minister and Nepali Congress leader Bal Krishna Khand was sentenced to two years in prison and fined Rs 20,000. The court found him guilty of abusing public office, forging government documents, committing fraud, and engaging in organized crime.

In the same case, Bhutanese rights activist Tek Nath Rizal was sentenced to two years in prison and fined Rs 20,000 after being convicted of misusing government documents, fraud, and organized crime.

The court also sentenced Keshav Prasad Dulal, Gyanu Bhandari, Sagar Rai, Sandesh Sharma, Dr. Indrajit Rai, Govinda Kumar Chaudhary, Angdeva Sherma, and Tanka Narayan Pandey to four years in prison each, along with fines of Rs 40,000.

Meanwhile, Shamsher Miya, Haribhakta Maharjan, Niranjan Kumar Kharel, and Narendra KC were each sentenced to one year in prison and fined Rs 10,000 in connection with the case.