Kathmandu, June 28: A local leader of the Nepali Congress in Biratnagar, Abhishek Giri, has been arrested by police on allegations of extorting money from inmates at the Morang District Prison. Giri was taken into custody from his residence in Madhumara, Biratnagar-8, on Saturday morning.
A team from the Morang District Police Office conducted a search of Giri’s residence. Although no suspicious items were found, police said he was detained for further investigation. According to police sources, Giri is accused of collecting money from inmates, including the daily allowance provided by the government, winter and summer clothing allowances, and earnings from prison labor.
There are currently 1,199 inmates at the Morang District Jail, including 1,092 men and 107 women. Each inmate receives a daily allowance of Rs. 80, amounting to approximately Rs. 96,000 per day in total. In addition, around 500 inmates weave stools while another 100 weave carpets inside the prison.
Police allege that Giri, in collusion with prison inmate leader (Naike) Rakesh Yadav, collected money generated from the sale of these products as well as the government-provided clothing allowances. The government provides Rs. 2,500 each for winter clothing and another Rs. 2,500 for summer clothing for each inmate.
A police officer involved in the investigation said, “We are collecting evidence to determine through which channels the inmates’ money was transferred into Giri’s accounts. He has been taken into custody based on preliminary information.”
Police sources further claimed that Giri instructed inmates to transfer money into the bank accounts of his associates before the funds were handed over to him.
A police team led by Inspector Abhishek Shrestha also searched two cars—a white and a black vehicle—parked outside Giri’s residence. After finding nothing suspicious in the vehicles, officers searched the house.
Morang Superintendent of Police (SP) Kabita Katuwal said a detailed investigation into the case has begun.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mahendra Kumar Mishra said Giri was arrested based on information that he had been exerting undue influence over inmates to extort money from them. Police said further investigation is underway.
Giri, who had previously served a prison sentence for involvement in various criminal activities, became active in Nepali Congress politics after his release. He, however, has claimed that he is being framed out of political revenge.
Following the arrest of Giri, who previously served as a prison ward representative, inmates at Morang District Prison staged protests.
The demonstration began after police brought the prison’s current inmate leader (Naike), Rakesh Yadav, to the Morang District Police Office for questioning over suspected collusion with Giri.
The inmates protested against any attempt to transfer Yadav to another prison. They demanded that while action may be taken against Giri, Yadav should not be transferred.
As tensions escalated, police returned Yadav to the prison and recorded his statement there.
According to a senior security official, preliminary investigations indicate that while serving as the prison’s inmate leader, Giri allegedly made inmates sign promissory notes under various pretexts—dated to periods before their imprisonment—and used them to extort money.
Giri is currently being held at the Morang District Police Office as the investigation continues.
People’s News Monitoring Service.
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