Kantipur Online, 15 Dec. 2001

KATHMANDU, Dec 14 - The wife of Govinda Prasad Mainali, the Nepalis man who has been controversially sentenced to life imprisonment in Japan for alleged murder, has accused the Japanese legal system of injustice and has further called for her husband's early release in Japan, agencies report. Govinda, 35, was earlier acquitted of charges for robbing and murdering by the Tokyo District Court but the Tokyo High Court overturned the not-guilty verdict. Mainali was charged for choking 39-year-old female Yasuko Watanabe to death at her apartment and robbing her of 40,000 yen (357 dollars) in cash. Watanabe was leading a double life as a top businesswoman during the day and a prostitute at night, media reports have said. Furthermore, many have criticized the court move saying that a Japanese citizen would have been freed pending the appeal. AFP news agency has quoted Radha Mainali, 29, the wife of Mainali as saying in Tokyo on Friday: "It is very strange that he was sentenced to life although no fresh evidence was presented...This ruling was unfair." Radha met her husband on Thursday for the first time since he left his homeland eight years ago on a tourist visa. "He (Govinda) is the last man who could kill animals or do anything cruel... What I can tell as his wife is that he never committed the crime," Radha is further quoted as saying. Govinda was planning to return to Nepal after spending a year or two working and earning to enjoy a wealthy life back home. His second daughter was born after Govinda left Nepal and had never seen her father. The same report quotes Katsuhiko Tsukuda, Govinda's lawyer, as saying that the case is now with the Supreme Court and it could take two to three years until the final verdict is handed down. (sjs)