Rehabilitation centre in Kathmandu accused of torture; 21 inmates rescued

The Nepal Police has rescued 21 inmates -- suffering from drug and alcohol addiction -- from a rehabilitation centre in Kathmandu after receiving complaints that they were allegedly being ill-treated at the institution.

The inmates were rescued from the reform home run by NGO Transformation Nepal at Sukedhara in the outskirts of Kathmandu on Thursday, police said.

The proprietor of the reform centre, identified as Santosh Ghimire, and an employee of the NGO were arrested on charges of torturing the people sheltered there, they said, adding that an investigation has been initiated into the matter.

"Thirteen out of the 34 inmates housed at the reform home fled recently and approached police to lodge a complaint about the ill-treatment they used to face there. The inmates' families also urged the police to take action against the proprietor and rescue their relatives. Acting on their complaints, we rescued the remaining 21 inmates on Thursday," Basanta Lama, Chief of the Metropolitan Range, told a press conference here Friday.

The rescued people have been handed over to their families, he said.

Lama said according to a preliminary investigation, the proprietor collected a lump sum amount from the inmates' parents for the whole year at the rate of Rs 35,000 per month for each person. At the centre, the inmates were subjected to various kinds of physical and mental torture. They were also not allowed to meet their family members.

(With inputs from agencies.)