Kathmandu: Nepalese cricketer Sandeep Lamichhane found guilty in rape case, Played IPL also
Kathmandu : (Susheel Dhakaal) Surprising news is coming from the cricket world. Nepal’s Sandeep Lamichane, who made a name for himself with his spin bowling in international cricket, has been found guilty in a rape case. Now the court has to announce the punishment.
Former Nepal national cricket team captain Sandeep Lamichane was found guilty of raping a minor by a court on Friday. Nepal’s court in January released Lamichane, who was arrested in August last year after a 17-year-old girl accused him of rape in a hotel room in Kathmandu. 23-year-old Lamichane is the first cricketer from Nepal to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He made his debut for Delhi Capitals franchise in 2018. According to the report of Kathmandu Post, a single bench of Justice Shishir Raj Dhakal passed the order on Friday. The final hearing started on Sunday, after which the verdict was announced. Kathmandu District Court on Friday convicted Lamichane of rape. The report said that Lamichane’s jail sentence will be decided in the next hearing.
He is currently out on bail. On January 12, the Patan High Court had ordered his release. On the review petition of Lamichane, the joint bench of Justice Dhruva Raj Nanda and Ramesh Dahal had ordered his release on a bail bond of Rs 20 lakh with conditions.Due to his leg spin and dangerous googly, Lamichhane was a very popular cricketer in major T20 leagues around the world, including Australia’s Big Bash League, Pakistan’s Pakistan Super League and West Indies’ Caribbean Premier League. Lamichhane holds the record of taking the second fastest 50 wickets in ODIs and the third fastest 50 wickets in T20 Internationals. He last played in the T20 International against Kenya in August this year.
Kathmandu District Court, in a post-custody hearing on November 4, 2022, had ordered Lamichane to be sent to Sundhara jail and the cricketer had moved the High Court challenging the order. The Kathmandu District Attorney’s Office filed a case against Lamichhane on August 21, accusing him of rape. The minor girl had filed a case against the cricketer in the cowshed on September 6.Nepal Police arrested him at Tribhuvan International Airport on October 6 when he was returning from Trinidad and Tobago after playing in the Caribbean Premier League. The district attorney had sought compensation from Lamichane for the alleged physical and mental torture of the victim. After the charge sheet was filed, Lamichane’s bank account and property were seized.
23-year-old Lamichhane is the first cricketer from Nepal to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He made his debut for Delhi Capitals franchise in 2018. Sandeep Lamichhane has taken a total of 112 wickets in 51 ODI matches for Nepal while he has 98 wickets in 52 T20 matches. His best performance in this format is 5 wickets for 9 runs. His best bowling performance in ODI has been 6 wickets for 11 runs. After getting trapped in Sandeep’s case, the Nepalese team has also suffered a big setback.