Vacancy of judges in the Supreme Court reaching 6

As Chief Justice Shrestha does not hear the case, technically 6 posts are vacant. Six vacancies in the Supreme Court, which has a constitutional arrangement of 21 judges in total, is a vacancy equal to one-third. Chief Justice Shrestha had planned to call a meeting of the Judicial Council and recommend appointments to the vacant post before the vacation. However, the council meeting could not be held after the Nepal Bar started protesting that the appointment would not be allowed until the rules of the judicial council were fixed. It has an impact on the administration of justice.

The meeting of the Constitutional Council, held three times in a week, has recommended Prakashman Singh Raut, the most senior judge of the Supreme Court, as the Chief Justice. When Pushpa Kamal Dahal, an ex-officio member of the Constitutional Council, made a proposal that not only the Chief Justice should be appointed to vacant constitutional posts, but the recommendation was not made in the previous meeting.

The judicial council will have to recommend for the appointment of 5 vacant judges in the Supreme Court. The appointment process has been stopped after the bar protested in the council since August 14. A study committee was formed under the chairmanship of the senior most judge Raut to resolve the differences between the bar and the bench. Apart from Raut, council member Ram Prasad Bhandari, bar president Gopalkrishna Ghimire and general secretary Anjita Khanal participated in the committee on behalf of the bench. Last Friday, separate reports have been submitted from both camps.

'We have written in the report that the unconstitutional amendment of the rules made by the council to appoint the registrar of the Supreme Court and the law secretary before the judge in the high court should be repealed, the members of the council also accepted this matter in a roundabout way and if it is to be repealed, let us send it to the constitutional bench and dispose of it there. Bar president Ghimire said, 'The Chief Justice has said that he will open both reports in the judicial council meeting, but the meeting has not been held.' Opinions that should not be done have been kept in council meetings. "It is not appropriate for us to proceed with the appointment while the bar is protesting," he said to Kantipur The bench is under pressure from the employees of the administration of justice not to quash the rules under any circumstances. Under the pressure of the bar, the employees have warned that they will go on strike if Niyamali's new system is cancelled. On the other hand, it is not decided when the meeting of the council will be held, which is under pressure due to the bar's stance of not allowing the appointment of judges until it is dismissed.

Three months after Shrestha became the Chief Justice, six judges were recommended on November 5. In which 4 High Court Judges Sharanga Subedi, Abdul Aziz Muslim, Mahesh Sharma Poudel, Tek Prasad Dhungana and two lawyers Sunil Kumar Pokharel and Balkrishna Dhakal were appointed.

There was a discussion about recommending the then Attorney General Deenmani Pokharel for a vacant position, but it was left vacant because there was no consensus among the members of the council. Since then, even though the judges are retiring, they have not been appointed.