
Kathmandu, June 11: The Supreme Court is set to deliver its verdict today on the writ petitions filed against the appointment of officials to constitutional bodies and commissions made via ordinance over four and a half years ago.
The constitutional bench of the Supreme Court, led by former Chief Justice Bishowambhar Prasad Shrestha and including Justices Sapana Pradhan Malla, Manoj Kumar Sharma, Kumar Chudal, and Nahakul Subedi, concluded hearings and scheduled the verdict for today. All lawyers involved were instructed to submit their final written arguments (debate notes) by May 30.
A total of 15 writ petitions were filed by advocates including Om Prakash Aryal, Kirtinath Sharma, Sulabh Kharel, Samrit Kharel, Nishant Babu Khadka, and senior advocate Dinesh Tripathi, among others.
In December 2020 (Mangsir 2077) and April 2021 (Baisakh 2078), the Constitutional Council, chaired by then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, recommended the appointment of 52 individuals to vacant positions in 13 constitutional bodies via ordinance without parliamentary hearings. President Bidya Devi Bhandari endorsed both rounds of appointments.
The ordinance controversially amended the rules governing the Constitutional Council, changing the quorum requirement.
Previously, five out of six members were required for a quorum, but the ordinance allowed a quorum with just a majority, including the chairperson. This enabled recommendations to be made without the participation of opposition leaders.
As a result, despite the boycott of the meeting by then-opposition leader Sher Bahadur Deuba and Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota, the Council, composed of PM Oli (chair), then Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana, and then National Assembly Chair Ganesh Prasad Timilsina, proceeded with the appointments.
Soon after the first round of recommendations, PM Oli dissolved the Parliament, preventing the required parliamentary hearings for 32 of the appointees. Citing a parliamentary rule that appointments are valid if not challenged within 45 days, President Bhandari appointed the nominees without hearings on Magh 21, 2077 (February 3, 2021) and Asar 10, 2078 (June 24, 2021).
Between Poush 1, 2077 (mid-December 2020) and Shrawan 10, 2079 (late July 2022), 15 writs were filed challenging the legitimacy of the appointments. The Supreme Court faced criticism for delaying proceedings for years. After 15 court appearances without resolution, on Falgun 30 (mid-March 2025), the constitutional bench, led by Chief Justice Prakashman Singh Raut, placed the case under continuous hearing until a final verdict, which has now been scheduled for today. #nepal #supremecourt