High Court Increases Sentence for 'Gore' in Sanam Shakya Murder Case

Morang: The Biratnagar High Court has sentenced Chudamani Upreti, also known as 'Gore', the main accused in the brutal murder of Sanam Shakya in Urlabari, Morang, to an additional 10 years in prison. However, the court ruled that the charge of organized crime in the high-profile 38-quintal gold smuggling case could not be proven. 

A joint bench of Judges Mahendranath Upadhyay and Prakash Chandra Adhikari partially overturned the Morang District Court's decision, finding Upreti guilty in the kidnapping and hostage-taking case. With this, Upreti will have to serve an additional 10 years in prison in addition to the life sentence (20 years) he received in the homicide case.

The government side had filed an appeal, arguing that although the district court found Upreti guilty in the murder case, it had not specified a sentence for the kidnapping and hostage-taking charges. After continuous hearings since Magh 20, the High Court partially accepted the government's claim.

In the same case, the High Court reduced the sentences of Narendra Karki, Mohan Kofle, and Bhojraj Bhandari—who had been sentenced to 20 years each by the district court—to 10 years each. 

Similarly, the court overturned the acquittal of Madan Silwal, who was accused of being an accomplice, and sentenced him to three years in prison. Regarding Lakpa Sherpa and Bhabin Tamang, the district court's verdict was upheld.

However, the court ruled that government evidence was insufficient regarding the charges of organized crime and customs evasion related to the smuggling of approximately 38 quintals of gold. Consequently, former police officers and businessmen, including former DIG Govinda Prasad Niraula, then SSP Shyam Bahadur Khatri, and DSP Sanjay Bahadur Raut, have also been acquitted by the High Court.

The scandal came to light after 33.5 kg of gold, smuggled from Dubai on Magh 9, 2074 , went missing while being cleared from Tribhuvan International Airport. During the search for that gold, Gore's group was accused of murdering Sanam Shakya on Falgun 18, 2074 in Urlabari-1 by torturing him with electric shocks.

Although the investigation committee concluded that approximately 38 quintals of gold entered Nepal illegally during 2015–2016, the court held that the charge of organized crime could not be proven. The missing 33 kg of gold has still not been found. 

While the High Court's latest verdict increases the punishment in the Sanam murder case, it raises questions as the core network of gold smuggling has yet to be fully brought to justice.