Police on Thursday collected blood samples of suspended Superintendent of Police Dilli Raj Bista, his son Kiran Bista, and Aayush Bista, nephew of Bhimdutta Municipality Mayor Surendra Bista, in the ongoing investigation into the rape and murder of 13-year-old Nirmala Pant.

According to Nepal Police Spokesperson SSP Sailesh Thapa Kshetri, blood sample of SP Bista was taken in Kathmandu while samples of Aayush and Kiran were collected in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur.

“Blood samples of Aayush and Kiran will be brought to Kathmandu for DNA test,” Kshetri said. Dr. Harihar Wasti of the Forensic Department at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) said the blood samples were collected and later submitted to the police.

SP Dilli Raj Bista has been accused of negligence in the investigation of Nirmala’s rape and murder in Kanchanpur on July 26. He was recalled, and later suspended after the controversy around the case escalated.

The blood samples of the suspended police officer, his son, and the nephew of the mayor have been collected two days after DNA analysis of the main suspect 41-year-old Dilip Singh Bista tested negative. Police arrested Dilip Singh Bista on August 19 and presented him to the media the following day as the main suspect. He was released after 24 days in custody, after the DNA test cleared him.

In an interview with the Post, Police Superintendent Bista repeatedly said he had no connections with

Roshni Bam and Babita Bam, the two sisters who were arrested for alleged complicity in Nirmala’s rape and murder.

“There is rumour of my contact with the Bam sisters which is completely false,” Bista said. “I have never heard about them, let alone meeting them. I only came across them when they were brought to the District Police Office for inquiry.”

Bista said he is ready to cooperate in the investigation.

Earlier on Thursday, Nirmala’s parents urged the government to find the culprits as soon as possible.

Nirmala’s father, Yagya Raj Panta, and mother, Durga Devi Panta, arrived in Kathmandu on Wednesday along with some human rights activists to campaign for justice for their daughter. “Either the state should shoot me as well or give justice to my daughter,” Durga Devi told a press conference. Nirmala’s parents and activists have criticised the government for the delay in finding the culprits and failing to take action against the investigating officers, accused of tampering with evidence at the crime scene.

“They have fired bullets at us. Now, they are accusing us of conspiring something similar to Tikapur incident whereas we only demand justice for our daughter. What has happened with my daughter should not happen to anyone’s daughter,” said Yagya Raj Panta. Nepal Police has formed a five-member probe team led by SSP Uttam Subedi to assist the DSP Angur GC-led Central Investigation Bureau team that was dispatched to investigate the case four days after the crime.