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NBA chief advises judges caution |
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Nepal Bar Association (NBA) Chairman Bishwa Kant Mainali has advised judiciary to deal with political issues sensitively, keeping in mind the possibility of conflicts at a time when the country is passing through a transitional phase.
Speaking at the inauguration of a two-day conference of Supreme Court justices and chief judges of appellate courts on Thursday, Mainali said the current phase of transition and its vulnerability demands that the judiciary be more sensitive.
“The justices should not try to be populist at a critical time like this. The judiciary should refrain from showing judicial activism at a time when the country is in transition,” said Mainali.
He suggested to Chief Justice Anup Raj Sharma to ward off conflicts by discussing sensitive cases with all justices and deliver verdicts on the basis of consensus. Only last week, Sharma had issued an interim order, staying the government decision to promote Maj. Gen. Toran Jung Bahadur Singh. The judiciary today, said Mainali, is like a ship caught up in a storm. “If the captain lacks skills, the ship might sink.”
“On certain issues, the judiciary should not take decisions in a hurry,” said Mainali. He noted that the Indian Supreme Court has not issued its verdict on the Babri Masjid demolition case, which has been pending for over a decade, considering the possibility of bloodshed that the verdict might trigger, no matter which side wins.
In response to Mainali’s suggestions on delivering judgments based on consensus, Chief Justice Sharma maintained that the Nepali judiciary has followed a different model in which justices can differ in their decisions. “The judiciary has its own rules and regulations and we cannot follow the American model but our own, where justices can have diverse opinions,” said Sharma, adding that the judiciary would follow the model that the new constitution prescribes.
Conceding that the judiciary is functioning in a critical and sensitive transitional phase, Sharma said no other institution is as sensitive as the judiciary. Sharma said the judiciary has been successful in reforming and modernising its services significantly with the implementation of the Five-Year Strategic Plan. Kathmandu Post |
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SC seeks record on army chief's age controversy |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 15 May 2009 14:11 |
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The Supreme Court, which was scheduled to give its verdict on the controversy around Army Chief Rookmangud Katawal´s age, ordered the Army Headquarters to send on Wednesday the sheetroll bearing the record of Katawal´s age. The court said that the document is required to reach a decision on the controversy. The army chief has been charged with correcting his age through a royal decree back in 1976. |
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SC upholds stay on generals' case |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 15 May 2009 14:08 |
The Supreme Court (SC) on Sunday upheld its March 24 order that stayed the Maoist-led government´s marching orders to eight brigadier generals. The order, some people think, is a blow to the Maoists and a moral boost up for the embattled Army Chief.
The ruling rejects the Defense Ministry´s plea to vacate the stay order passed by Justice Kalyan Shrestha. Maoists had taken to streets and burnt the effigy of Shrestha and criticized the judges publicly after the stay order.
Continuation of the stay order means that the generals, whom Army Chief Rookmangud Katawal wanted in the army, will continue their office. But the order has given a serious blow to the Maoists who wanted to weaken the hold of the Army Chief in the national army.
Continuing the March 24 stay order, Justices Anup Raj Sharma and Prem Sharma said that they cannot vacate the interim order on the basis of the plea filed by the Defense Ministry on March 25 because the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, which decided to pension off the eight brigadier generals, had not sought to scrap the stay order. The justices, in their three-page order, said that the PMO, not the Defense Ministry, should have moved the apex court to vacate the interim order.
The retirement of the eight brigadier generals has been one of the issues of bone of contention between the Maoist-led government and the Nepal Army. Army Chief Katawal had recommended the government to extend their tenure but the Maoist-led government rejected it and gave them marching orders without giving any reason.
Later after the SC stay order, Katawal let the brigadier generals to continue in the office. This was one of reasons put forward by the Maoists when they made a failed attempt to sack the Army Chief.
In the meantime, the court said that it would hold final hearing on the case on May 31 in view of the sensitivity of the case.
The retirement row landed into the court after the eight brigadier generals moved the apex court with a joint writ petition against the government decision to pension them off in March. |
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SC to have wing to monitor verdict implementation |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 15 May 2009 14:07 |
The Supreme Court (SC) has decided to form a directorate to monitor implementation of judgments passed by different courts across the country. According to SC Co-spokesperson Hemanta Rawal, a meeting of Full Court, the apex policy making body of the judiciary, took the decision to this effect on Tuesday.
The directorate has long been felt necessary in view of poor implementation of verdict. Currently, district courts are responsible for translating judgments but have not been able to perform upto the mark. Court officials said that poor implementation of court-passed judgments has led to erosion of people´s faith in judiciary.
Newly appointed Chief Justice Min Bahadur Rayamajhee, in his commitments to media while assuming his office on Sunday, had announced to set up a separate wing to implement court judgments. |
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SC asks PM to explain Katawal's sacking |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 15 May 2009 14:05 |
A single bench of justice Bharat Raj Upreti of the Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the government to explain why it ´sacked´ the chief of army staff, Rookmangud Katawal, according to our correspondent Kiran Chapagain.
The bench took the decision in response to a writ petition filed by advocate Damodar Poudel on Wednesday against Katawal´s dismissal.
The court has named the prime minister, the Prime Minister´s Office, and Lt.Gen. Kul Bahadur Khadka (who was appointed acting chief by the cabinet after it had sacked Katawal) as respondents |
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