Kathmandu, July 3: The Supreme Court has dismissed petitions filed against 52 officials appointed to various constitutional bodies. With the majority verdict issued on Wednesday midnight, the officials are now authorized to serve their full tenure.
The case was heard by a constitutional bench comprising Chief Justice Prakash Man Singh Raut, Senior Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla, and Justices Manoj Kumar Sharma, Dr. Kumar Chudal, and Dr. Nahakul Subedi. Among them, Senior Justice Malla, Justice Sharma, and Dr. Chudal ruled in favor of dismissing the petitions.
However, Chief Justice Raut and Dr. Subedi held a dissenting opinion. They deemed that the appointments made on Mangsir 30, 2077 BS (December 15, 2020) based on the Constitutional Council’s recommendation were unconstitutional and should be annulled through a writ of certiorari. Nevertheless, both agreed that appointments made on Baisakh 26, 2078 BS (May 9, 2021) should stand and the related petitions should be dismissed.
Although the final verdict was initially scheduled to be announced on Jestha 28 (June 10), it was postponed and ultimately delivered today after lengthy deliberations. The constitutional bench met late into the night, and Chief Justice Raut formally informed the court of the split decision.
Following the decision, Supreme Court spokesperson Achyut Kharel confirmed that a majority of the justices voted to dismiss the petitions.
The government had appointed 52 officials to various constitutional bodies in two phases during 2077 and 2078 BS through ordinances. Alleging that these appointments were unconstitutional, a total of 15 writ petitions had been filed with the Supreme Court.
Hearings on the petitions concluded on Jestha 1 (May 14), and the decision was finally announced today after a delay. #nepal #supremecourt #justice
