Police on Saturday apprehended CPN-UML leader and former lawmaker Karna Bahadur Malla on rape charges. A team from the Lalitpur District Police Range apprehended Malla from Satdobato.

The arrest follows a First Information Report (FIR) filed by a woman against the leader. The complainant has been on an unto-death hunger strike at Maitighar Mandala, demanding legal action against Malla.

Senior Superintendent of Police Hobindra Bogati, chief of the Lalitpur Police, confirmed that Malla was taken into custody based on the specific complaint lodged by the victim.

Malla, 52, a resident of Dhainkot in Soru Rural Municipality-10, Mugu, served as a member of the Constituent Assembly in 2008 representing the UML.

Bogati said that the complaint was filed on February 17, and the police obtained an arrest warrant from the court the following day. However, Malla had been absconding since then.