KATHMANDU:- The Supreme Court has stated that CPN-UML Chair and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Nepali Congress leader and former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak be released from custody if the investigation is not completed by coming Thursday.

Oli and Lekhak are currently remanded to judicial custody in the course of implementation of the Karki Commission to Investigate September 8 and 9 incidents, which implicated both in criminal offence.

A division bench of Justices Binod Sharma and Sunil Kumar Pokharel ordered that if the investigation is completed within the time limit as per the order of the District Court, the case should be decided accordingly, and if not, the accused should be released until further investigation is completed.

A mandamus order was issued in the name of the defendants to complete the process of Section 15 of the Criminal Procedures, 2074, release the KP Sharma Oli and Ramesh Lekhak from custody, and complete the further investigation work and do whatever is required.

The apex court acted in response to a habeas corpus petition filed by Oli’s wife, Radhika Shakya and leader Lekhak’s wife, Yashoda Lekhak. RSS