Five Nepali teachers, who were arrested from the bordering Indian town of Nautanawa for possessing fake Indian notes, have been languishing in jail for the past one month. Nautanwa is situated on the border of Nepal and India, in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

The teachers were caught with fake currency at Sunauli-Bhairahawa border on their return from a week-long educational and pilgrimage trip to Delhi and Agra on April 11. They stopped at the town to buys gifts for their family members.

The unfortunate teachers of Chitwan’s Dibya municipality-based Yuba Secondary School have been identified as Jeevakhar Dhakal, Ambika Prasad Ghimire, Krishna Chandra Sapkota, Achyut Ghimire (administrative staff) and Shiva Bhakta Pandit.  Apart from those held with fake IC notes, the other members of the group, who were travelling together, have already returned their home in Chitwan.

There were 28 people including teachers, staff and their family members in the visiting group.

According to Professor at South Asian University Yubaraj Pokharel, who is also a relative of one of those arrested, the five teachers have been taken to Allahabad High Court from Nautanawa police post via district court Maharajgunj district. He said they were caught with fake IC notes worth Rs 4000, which they changed with a local agent, and the police took ahead the legal proceedings based on the same. He said he learnt about the incident recently and informed the Nepali embassy in Delhi.

Nepal Police has learnt that the teachers got the IC notes in exchange from Arati Chaudhary, of Chitwan, and Bharat Shrestha and Ram Prasad Shrestha, of Kathmandu, before leaving for a week-long trip on April 5. As the Nepal Police has arrested two of the three money changers and initiated investigation, Foreign Ministry has requested the Indian embassy in Kathmandu to release the teachers from prison, said Pokharel. However, there is no information regarding the next step and the current situation of the teachers.

Against this backdrop, the release of the teachers would be clear only after the completion of court proceedings because the case of fake note currency is taken seriously in India.