The government has withdrawn serious charges leveled against political leaders and activists, reports Kantipur Daily.

In a controversial decision taken by the cabinet over a month and half ago, the government withdrew some 349 criminal cases that were under review at various courts across the country. Maoist leaders and cadres benefited the most through this decision.

The report said that as per the decision, charges as serious as rape to even drug smuggling which were leveled against some individuals have been withdrawn.

Rights activists have taken a serious exception to the government’s decision to withdraw serious criminal cases and have said that the move will only give rise to culture of impunity and lead to sharp increase in crimes.

As per a document obtained by the daily from the Ministry of Law, among the cases that have been withdrawn, 104 cases are related to robbery and 99 are related to homicide.

The report quoted a source as saying that the cases were withdrawn saying that it was filed against Maoist leaders and activists. nepalnews.com Dec 15 08