The Kathmandu District Attorney’s Office on Monday filed a chargesheet at the Kathmandu District Court against suspended national cricket team captain Sandeep Lamichhane accusing him of raping a minor.

District Attorney Laxman Upadhyay informed that a rape charge has been filed against Lamichhane at the court on Monday.

“We have presented the chargesheet at the district court demanding a prison sentence of 10-12 years on rape charge,” said Upadhyay. “We filed the case on Monday.”

“On Tuesday we will know which judge will preside over the case following a lottery system. Then the court will hear the statement of the accused and a formal hearing will begin,” said Upadhyay.

Achyut Neupane, chief of the district attorney’s office in Kathmandu said the hearing will be completed soon.

“But on Tuesday the court is likely to decide whether Lamichhane will be freed on bail or without bail or kept in judicial custody,” said Neupane.

Lamichhane has been accused of raping a 17-year-old girl on August 21. He has been charged under Section 219 of the Criminal Code 2074. If the charge against him is proven, he will be imprisoned for 10 to 12 years as per the existing legal provisions.

Last week, Nepal Police after an investigation into Lamichhane said he had indeed raped the minor.

The minor had filed a case against the 22-year-old cricketer on September 6 at the Metropolitan Police Circle, Gaushala.

Earlier, the District Court, Kathmandu had issued an arrest warrant against him on September 7 acting on the case filed by the Gaushala Police Circle after the girl accused him of rape.

Following the arrest warrant, the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) suspended the globe-trotting leg spinner. When he was accused of rape, Lamichhane was in Trinidad & Tobago to play the Twenty20 franchise Caribbean Premier League (CPL) from Jamaica Tallawahs.

Lamichhane wrote on Facebook the same day claiming that he was innocent and would return to Nepal to seek justice. However, after he mysteriously disappeared, Nepal Police circulated an Interpol diffusion against Lamichhane.

On October 1, Lamichhane announced that he would return to Nepal on October 6 to face legal charges. Soon after he landed at the airport, he was arrested by officials at the Department of Immigration and plainclothes personnel.