Kathmandu: Bechan Jha, a middleman involved in coordinating between high-level political leaders and the Ministry of Home Affairs in the fake Bhutanese refugee case, has been sent to jail. The Kathmandu District Court, under the bench of Judge Tirtharaj KC, issued the order to detain him on Sunday.
Jha faces charges of organized crime, crimes against the state, fraud, and forgery. After a four-day long statement recording and detention debate, the court ordered his detention.
Despite Jha’s denial, police gathered additional evidence against him. According to the police charge sheet, it was Jha who arranged meetings between then Home Minister Balkrishna Khand, Secretary Teknarayan Pandey, and the fraud group. Secretary Pandey, currently in custody, had disclosed this in his written statement, mentioning, “Further investigation can deepen understanding after taking statements from Bechan Jha, who was politically connected to the ministry.”
The police were aware of Jha’s close ties with high-ranking Nepali Congress leaders, but due to his denial, further investigation in that direction could not proceed.
During his statement, Jha claimed to have no knowledge about the fake Bhutanese refugee case. He stated, “I have no acquaintance or contact with Teknarayan Pandey; only he knows what statements he has given. I have no knowledge regarding the check.” The charge sheet noted that Jha refused a polygraph test, which is used to detect lies. After two weeks of refusal, Jha provided a statement denying knowledge, after consulting with his legal advisors.
Although Jha denied accepting any checks, police investigations revealed that he had indeed deposited a check into his account. This was corroborated by an employee of Jha’s company, Vibhansu Brothers, Kanchan Shrestha, who testified to the police.
Jha is alleged to have taken a check worth 20 million Nepalese Rupees from Ram Sharan K.C., promising to have the fake Bhutanese refugees included in the list for resettlement to the U.S. through a cabinet decision. Jha allegedly instructed Kanchan to deposit the check into his account at Investment Bank. However, when the funds were insufficient, the check was returned by the bank. Kanchan documented in a statement to the police that he returned the check to Jha.
This check has emerged as one of the strongest pieces of evidence against Jha. Further investigations also uncovered that Hari Bhakta Maharjan later gave cash to Jha when the check could not be cashed.
The police charge sheet mentions that Jha assured the victims that a decision to resettle the fake Bhutanese refugees would be made by the cabinet. It states, “Defendant Bechan Jha, in a clear attempt to avoid punishment for his crimes, falsely claimed that he had no knowledge of the Bhutanese refugee issue and that he had not received the 20 million rupee check from Ram Sharan K.C. It is evident that Bechan Jha played a major role in promising to send the relatives of the individuals mentioned in the charge sheet dated 2080/01/10 to the United States as Bhutanese refugees, coordinating with high-level political figures such as Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, Teknath Rizal, Indrajit Rai, and senior government officials like Teknarayan Pandey.”
Jha allegedly collected money by convincing people that a cabinet decision was imminent to resettle the Bhutanese refugees in a third country. The cabinet did indeed decide on 13 Mangsir 2078 to initiate the resettlement process for those left out of the Bhutanese refugee list, as Jha had indicated.
In the first phase, on 10 Jestha 2080, the police filed cases against 30 individuals. In the second phase, additional charges were filed against five intermediaries, and now the third supplementary charge sheet has been submitted to the court. This high-profile case, considered one of the most significant in the history of Nepal’s police, led to the arrests of former Deputy Prime Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, former Home Minister Balkrishna Khand, former MP Angtawa Sherpa, Secretary Teknarayan Pandey, former Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa’s security advisor Indrajit Rai, Nepal Haj Committee Chairman Shamsher Miyan, and Bhutanese refugee leader Teknath Rizal, among others. Also arrested were Rayamajhi’s son Sandeep Rayamajhi, Khand’s PA Narendra KC, intermediaries Keshav Dulal, Sanu Bhandari, Sandesh Sharma, Sagar Rai, Tank Gurung, Ram Sharan KC, and Govinda Chaudhary.
Among them, Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, Teknarayan Pandey, Indrajit Rai, Sanu Bhandari, Keshav Dulal, Sandesh Sharma, and Pratik Thapa are currently in judicial custody.
