Kathmandu District Court, a judicial body in Kathmandu district, ordered the release of medical entrepreneur Durga Prasai on Rs 200,000 bail on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, in a cybercrime case.
Judge Umesh Prasad Luitel’s bench issued the order for Prasai, who was arrested on Monday, September 28, 2026, by the Nepal Police Cyber Bureau, the cybercrime investigation unit of Nepal Police, from his residence in Bhaktapur.
The arrest followed a complaint filed by Rastriya Swatantra Party Member of Parliament (MP) Rachana Khatiwada. Khatiwada accused Prasai of making “objectionable remarks” on social media, specifically YouTube, about her son, martyr Rasik Khatiwada. Prasai allegedly commented that Khatiwada “traded her son’s body for an MP position.”
The case against Prasai has been filed under the Electronic Transaction Act, 2063, with particular reference to sections 47, 58a, and 76. Section 47 of the Act addresses the unlawful publication of content in electronic form.
Background to the case
The District Public Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against Prasai at the Kathmandu District Court on Monday, October 5, 2026. Prior to this, Prasai’s wife, Uma Prasai, had filed a habeas corpus petition with the Supreme Court, Nepal’s highest judicial body, claiming unlawful detention. The Supreme Court had ordered the police to present the reasons for the arrest and related investigation files. However, the Supreme Court later decided not to hear the petition further, stating that the case would proceed at the District Court after the charge sheet was filed.
Durga Prasai is known as a medical entrepreneur, activist, political worker, and coordinator of the “Nation, Nationality, Religion-Culture and Citizen Protection Grand Campaign.”
What happens next
Police records indicate Prasai has been arrested 16 times in the last two years, totaling 17 arrests. This history as a repeat offender has led prosecutors to seek an additional 50% penalty in the current cybercrime case. Despite his release on bail, the case against Prasai will remain sub judice at the Kathmandu District Court. Prosecutors are seeking a maximum of five years imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 100,000 under the Electronic Transaction Act.
The full details of Prasai’s “objectionable remarks” have not been publicly disclosed. The current status of Prasai’s other pending cases and the impact of this bail order on them remain unknown.
