The sentencing of those convicted in the fake Bhutanese refugee case has been postponed to a 'watchful waiting'. The Kathmandu District Court was scheduled to deliver the verdict on Monday. The bench of District Judge Tej Bahadur Khadka has postponed the 'watchful waiting' for Tuesday.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, former Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand, and former Home Secretary Tek Narayan Pandey were convicted by the District Court on July 23 on charges of plotting to smuggle Nepali citizens into the US as fake Bhutanese refugees. The court order states that they were convicted of forgery, fraud, organized crime, and crimes against the state based on their crimes and roles. The court had convicted Rayamajhi, Khand and Pandey along with their gang members Keshav Dulal, Sanu Bhandari, Sagar Rai, Sandesh Sharma, then Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa's security advisor Indrajit Rai, Govinda Chaudhary, former Congress MP Angtawa Sherpa, then Haj Committee chairman Shamsher Miya, Bhutanese refugee leader Teknath Rijal, then Home Minister Khand's personal secretary Narendra KC, Haribhakta Maharjan, Niranjan Kumar Kharel and Bechan Jha. The court had described the case as a crime against the state and had directly damaged Nepal's international image. Seven people, including the defendant in the case, Sandeep Rayamajhi, were acquitted. The court acquitted the defendants Sandeep, Ram Sharan KC, Tank Kumar Gurung, Prateek Thapa, Laxmi Maharjan, Keshav Tuladhar and Ashish Budhathoki, saying that the charges were not proven.