Motorcycle-borne gunmen on Thursday shot dead a Nepalese Supreme Court judge, facing corruption charges, in an audacious attack in the heart of the capital, shattering an uneasy peace amid growing political uncertainty in the country.
64-year-old Justice Rana Bahadur Bam, who received six bullets, died in the hospital while two others, including his security guard, were being treated for bullet wounds.
Bam was going to the court when unidentified assailants riding a motorbike sprayed bullets on his car. They had blocked his path on the banks of Bagmati river in Sankhamool area of the city, police said.
Kathmandu police spokesman Rabi Raj Shrestha said the judge was shot as he emerged from the Baglamukhi temple after morning prayers at 11 AM.
The judge, his bodyguard and one more person in the car were rushed to nearby Norvic International Hospital for treatment where he succumbed to his injuries.
The condition of the bodyguard and other occupant, who was not named, was stated to be out of danger. Doctors at the hospital said the 64-year-old judge had been shot six times and was declared dead on being admitted to the hospital.