RAUTAHAT, May 16: Rautahat District Court has issued an arrest warrant against Kundan Kushahawa, provincial assembly member of the ruling CPN (Maoist Center), for smuggling timber.
Acting on a verdict issued by the then Hetauda Appellate Court, the district court on Tuesday issued the arrest warrant. Kushawa is accused of smuggling timber in September 2012 along with truck driver Indra Bahadur Manandhar. Logs were being smuggled hidden under sacks of rice.
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After interrogating the truck driver, police had filed a case at the district court. The court, however, acquitted Kushahawa and convicted only the truck driver. Kushahawa is the proprietor of New Everest Saw Mill.
The truck driver later moved the appellate court, arguing that it was not possible to smuggle the timber without the involvement of the saw mill owner and that he, the driver, was framed.
Responding to the case, the appellate court in July 2015 convicted Kushahawa as well and ordered the subordinate bodies to execute the verdict.
