KATHMANDU, May 29: Murder convict former CPN (Maoist Center) lawmaker Bal Krishna Dhungel was granted amnesty on Tuesday.

He was released from Delhibazar prison after he got official pardon from President Bidya Devi Bhandari.

Along with Dhungel, 816 other jailbirds doing their time in country’s various prisons were released after they were pardoned, coinciding the 11^th Republic Day.

The government recommended for a pardon to the jailbirds for ‘good behavior’ during their time in prison in accordance to the Article 276 of the constitution.

KATHMANDU, May 25: The Supreme Court on Friday has asked the government to furnish a written statement showing reason to grant official pardon to CPN (Maoist Center) leader Bal Krishna Dhungel.

The former lawmaker Dhungel has been serving a 20-year jail term in Dillibazaar Central Jail in charge of murdering Ujjan Kumar Shrestha in 1998, a resident of Okhaldhunga district.

Delhibazar Prison Office had recommended waiving the remaining jail sentence of Dhungel. But it was challenged after advocate Dinesh Tripathi filed a writ petition at the Supreme Court seeking prohibition of the waiver on Thursday.

The petition has stated that granting amnesty to a person who was imposed life sentence in a murder case on the basis of power and political nepotism is a wrong practice.

According to reports, Dhungel has already served more than eight years (40 percent) in jail on the same charge, and could be released if the cabinet meeting decides as per the waiver recommendation, and sends it to the President and the head of the state endorses it. The government is preparing to grant amnesty to Dhungel coinciding the occasion of Republic Day, which falls on May 29, said Onlinekhabar.

The SC has also summoned the government on Sunday for further discussion over the matter, according to Spokesperson Bhadrakali Pokhrel.

Okhaldhunga District Court, in 2004 had convicted Dhungel and seven others of Ujjan’s murder and booked him for life term with confiscation of property. But Rajbiraj Appellate Court had given him a clean chit in 2006. However, the SC in 2010 had overturned Rajbiraj Appellate Court’s decision upholding the 2004 verdict of the district court.

After Baburam Bhattarai-led government had forwarded Dhungel’s name for a presidential clemency on November 2011, implementation of the SC’s verdict remained on hold. However the apex court ordered the government not to provide any presidential clemency to Dhungel.

He had been walking free since then before he was arrested on October 31 last year.

Kathmandu: Election Commission today scrapped the Constituent Assembly election candidacy of Bal Krishna Dhungel and Usha Shah Fakir, candidates of the UCPN (Maoist) under the proportional representation system.
Dhungel’s candidacy was cancelled by the EC following the complaints lodged by another PR candidate Ram Kumari Jhakri of CPN (UML). Dhungel was sentenced life imprisonment by the Supreme Court in 2010 on murder charges.
Likewise, the EC has annulled the candidacy of Fakir based on the complaint that she is the commissioner of National Muslim Commission. Mohammad Zakir Hussein, candidate of Fakir’s own party UCPN (Maoist), had filed complaint against her.  According to the Interim Constitution of Nepal, a person is eligible to contest the polls if (s)he holds any public post and entertains facilities provided by the state.
Similarly, EC has also sought clarifications from 332 candidates under the PR system from various parties. According to EC commissioner Bir Bahadur Rai, those candidates should come up with their clarifications by November 10.

The Supreme Court had slapped life sentence to Dhungel on charges of murdering Ujjan Shrestha of Okhaldhunga. However the Baburam Bhattarai government had given him blanket amnesty- a move widely criticized at the time.

Along with the party has also nomiated Larkel Lama as its candidate under the proportional electoral system. Lama who had recently joined the party after deflecting from CPN UML has been accused of posessing passports of multiple nations. He was forced to resign as state minister for finance under the Jhalnath Khanal government after the news broke out.