Rayamajhi gets four years in prison, Khand two in fake Bhutanese refugee scam

Former Nepali deputy prime minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi and ex-home minister Bal Krishna Khand have received prison sentences for their roles in a large-scale fake Bhutanese refugee scam. The Kathmandu District Court handed Rayamajhi a four-year jail term and a Rs40,000 fine, while Khand was sentenced to two years and fined Rs20,000.

The scheme aimed to send Nepali citizens to the United States by falsely presenting them as Bhutanese refugees. Rayamajhi was convicted of fraud, organized crime, and offenses against the state. Khand was found guilty as an accomplice in these offenses. The court also sentenced former home secretary Tek Narayan Pandey to four years in prison and a Rs40,000 fine, and refugee leader Tek Nath Rizal to two years and a Rs20,000 fine.

Principal architects of the racket, Keshav Dulal, Sanu Bhandari, and Sagar Rai, each received four-year sentences and Rs40,000 fines. Other individuals, including Sandesh Sharma and Indrajit Rai, security advisor to a former home minister, were also sentenced to four years and fined Rs40,000. However, Rai, being over 75, will receive a 75 percent remission on his sentence.

The case, initially filed in May 2023 against 30 individuals, involved charges of forgery, fraud, organized crime, and offenses against the state. Supplementary charge sheets were filed in May and July 2024. The court's verdict integrates sentences for various charges based on individual roles, with implementation following the penalty for the most severe offense.

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Rayamajhi was convicted of fraud, organised crime and offences against the state, while Khand was convicted as an accomplice in those offences.