A former Gurkha officer sat in court as his son explained why he had ignored orders to do community work.

He had flown over from Nepal to watch his son Dipendra Sahi be re-sentenced for what a judge at Canterbury Crown Court called "a cowardly attack".

Sahi, 23, of Cheriton High Street, Folkestone had admitted being one of four men who had beaten a pub landlord with belts in February last year.

At his sentencing hearing last year, he was given 200 hours of unpaid work to do for the community as punishment for the assault - after a judge told him he he had shamed his father's name.

But the court heard he had TWICE failed to turn up to do the work - claiming that on one occasion he had overslept - and had completed just 28 hours of community work.

As Mr Sahi senior - a former British Army Officer with the Ghurka regiment and now an army welfare officer - watched from the public gallery, the judge ordered that CCTV footage of the beating be shown to the court.

Judge Simon James then told Sahi - who had admitted breaches of the community order: "You and your friends were involved in a cowardly attack - where you and at least three others attacked a man, who you punched, kicked and beat with leather belts.

"buck up your ideas, stay out of trouble - or you will go back to prison…” – judge simon james

"You used extreme violence, an attack which involved the use of weapons."

He gave him a 34-week jail sentence, suspended for two years, and told him he had to do another 200 hours of unpaid work for the community.

Judge James added: "At the original hearing you were given a chance... one that you were unable to take. But I accept that your failure to comply with the orders was born out of stupidity and immaturity rather than any deep seated mind set."

He said Sahi had already spent two weeks in jail "contemplating the consequences should you continue to display the arrogance and contempt that you have displayed towards the court".

The judge then gave the youngster a dressing down, telling him: "Buck up your ideas, stay out of trouble - or you will go back to prison."

Donna East, prosecuting, had earlier told how police had been called to a fight outside the View Public House in West Terrace.

"Mr Steven Bains, the owner of the public house, was inside cashing up. He heard a loud crash and he went to investigate.

"He saw a broken sign and asked them what had happened and was attacked. Fortunately he wasn't seriously hurt," she added.

Sahi claimed the four had downed two bottles of vodka and a bottle of whisky before the attack.