Kathmandu, July 1 -- Kathmandu District Court has sentenced Saroj Mishra, former editor of the Rajdhani Daily, to four months in prison and imposed a fine in a criminal defamation case, raising strong criticism from media organisations and press freedom advocates, who describe the verdict as a serious setback for freedom of expression.

The verdict was delivered on April 8 by a bench led by Judge Atmadev Joshi and authenticated on June 9. According to the full text of the judgment, Mishra was sentenced to four months' imprisonment and fined Rs1,000.

The court also ordered compensation totalling Rs500,000 to the plaintiff, with Rs250,000 to be paid by Mishra and the other Rs250,000 by the Rajdhani daily.

The judgment found Mishra guilty ...