Family members of Nirmala Pant, who was raped and murdered in Kanchanpur on July 26, say the government was too lenient on the two police officers under whose command possible clues and evidence related to the case were destroyed.   

Though the government sacked Superintendent of Police Dilliraj Bista and Police Inspector Jagadish Prasad Bhatta at the recommendation of a high-level inquiry panel on Thursday, the two men were allowed to pursue other jobs in civil service—a decision that has angered a large section of the public who have been closely following Nirmala’s case.   

Termination of Bista and Bhatta from police service alone is not enough because their action has enabled the killers to walk free, say Nirmala’s parents Durga Devi and Yangya Raj.

They have demanded legal action against Bista and Bhatta for their gross negligence while investigating the rape and murder of their 13-year-old daughter.

The couple submitted a memorandum of demands to Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa through Chief District Officer of Kanchanpur Taranath Adhikari on Monday.

Besides seeking punitive action against Bista and Bhatta, Nirmala’s parents have also demanded that the government arrest the person/s who killed their daughter.  

Earlier in the day, the couple took part in a rally in Mahendranagar, demanding justice for Nirmala.  

Friends and relatives of Nirmala, Kanchanpur-based human rights activists and men and women from different parts of the district attended the rally.

The protest campaign, launched by rights groups and Kanchanpur residents under the banner of Civil Struggle Committee, has resumed with the end of Dashain holidays.

Mina Bhandari, coordinator of the committee, told the Post that their movement would continue until the killers of Nirmala are captured and brought to justice.