Nepal: SC orders not to arrest former PM Deuba and his wife

The Supreme Court of Nepal directed the government authorities not to arrest former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and his spouse, former Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba. According to sources, the Deuba couple are staying abroad. The Kathmandu District Court had issued arrest warrants against the Deubas on April 6. With the top court’s ruling, the district court’s order has automatically been nullified.
The top court responded to a writ petition filed on behalf of the Deubas, a division bench of Justices Mahesh Sharma Poudel and Nityananda Pandey issued the interim order on Monday after hearing arguments presented by both the petitioners and the government. On May 19, a single bench of Justice Meghraj Pokharel had issued a show-cause order directing the respondents (government) to submit written explanations. Although the petitioners had sought an interim order to stay any arrest on the grounds that an investigation into a money-laundering offence was underway, the Supreme Court initially declined to grant immediate interim relief, observing that it would be appropriate to decide the matter only after hearing arguments from both sides.
The top court also said the Department of Money Laundering Investigation and the Kathmandu District Court had failed to clearly establish the legal grounds necessary for issuing an arrest warrant. Under Nepal’s anti-money laundering law, an arrest can be made only if there are reasonable grounds to believe that an accused person may flee, destroy evidence, obstruct the investigation, or influence the case. The order said such grounds had not been adequately demonstrated.
The Deuba couple is currently outside Nepal. Deuba had left for Singapore on February 25, just ahead of the March 5 elections. The couple were later believed to be in Hong Kong, although their whereabouts could not be independently verified.