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Controversial Nepal top court judge shot dead
A sitting judge of Nepal’s Supreme Court was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Lalitpur on the outskirts of Kathmandu today morning.
A sitting judge of Nepal’s Supreme Court was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Lalitpur on the outskirts of Kathmandu on Thursday morning.
Justice Rana Bahadur Bam, who was on his way to the Supreme Court by car, was shot at by two motorcycle borne assailants at 11.05 am. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died during treatment.
According to doctors at Norvic International Hospital, the deceased sustained bullet injuries on his chest, neck and stomach from close range and died due to internal bleeding.
Bam’s bodyguard and another associate who were in the car also sustained bullet injuries in the attack and are undergoing treatment.
Terming the incident as an attack on the state, Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai who reached the hospital informed about Bam’s death and appealed to people not to panic.
“We have called a meeting to review the security situation and have decided to increase security for senior judicial officers, bureaucrats and other government officials,” he told media persons.
Nepal Police chief Ravindra Pratap Shah stated that the assailants first shot Bam’s bodyguard before attacking him. Six rounds of empty shells were found at the site.
Pamphlets of a previously unheard outfit called Nepalbad Party were found near Bam’s car and the motorcycle believed to have used in the attack found abandoned 50 metres away.
“The reason behind the attack is not yet clear. Investigations are underway and we hope to arrest the accused and solve the case within the next few days,” said Shah.
Justice Bam was earlier in the limelight after he was indicted of releasing some notorious criminals convicted of abduction and had also faced impeachment proceedings.
