Court orders release of ex-Nepali ministers
Reuters, Kathmandu
Nepal's Supreme Court yesterday freed three ministers in the royalist government of King Gyanendra arrested after the monarch gave in to mass protests and handed power back to political parties in April. Rameshnath Pandey, Shris Shumsher Rana and Nichha Shumsher Rana were detained last month for questioning on their role in the crackdown on anti-king protests in which at least 17 people were killed and thousands wounded. "They were detained without enough ground and basis. So they should be freed," the court said in its order. Pandey was the minister for foreign affairs and the other two were junior members in the king's cabinet. Two more ministers in the royalist government detained last month are still in custody.
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