By Leelaraj Jhapali, Birtamod, Dec. 9: Families of a person serving jail term in Qatar accused of having killed his roommate have become utterly helpless.

Subash Raut, 30, a permanent resident of Tribeni Tol at Kankai Municipality-4 in Jhapa district has been imprisoned in Qatar for over a year.

Raut has been accused of killing Lamakaji Rai, a resident of Aiselikharka Maheswari village in Khotang. Raut was sentenced to jail last year.

Kumari Raut, the wife of Subash Raut, said quoting her husband that he found his friend Rai critically injured with a knife stabbed in his room when he came to the room from his work. The attacker had already run away.

"He is an honest, simple man from the village, did not know the loopholes in the laws. He tried as much as he could to save his friend, but now he has been imprisoned for life on the basis of fingerprint according to the law of Qatar," lamented Subash's wife Kumari.

She said that accused Subash and murdered Lamakaji Rai had a good relation.

A local, Yugal Dawadi, who seemed to be well-informed about the case, said that Subash was sent to jail because of the fingerprint although he did not murder Lamakaji Rai.

The Qatari court has sentenced Subash to at least three years in jail with a fine of (blood-money) 250 thousand Qatari Riyal. "If he fails to pay the blood money he will have to serve a jail term for life," Kumari said with teary eyes.

Local people's representative, Roshan Subedi, said that a team of local representatives had visited murdered Rai's families in his home and the family members said that if a sum of 1.5 million rupees was provided to them as compensation, they would assist for the release of the accused Raut.

But, Raut's family has no financial capacity to pay the amount, said Subedi.

Raut's wife Kumari has been running the family by doing daily wage works as a construction labourer and they have a cottage built on unregistered land.

I am having troubles even rearing two children, one aged 10 and the other aged 5, she said, adding, I appeal to all to help so that my husband can return home.  

A committee coordinated by Govind Paudel, Chair of Kankai Municipality Ward No. 4, has been formed to galvanise assistance so that Subash Raut can be brought home.