A full bench of Justices Nahakul Subedi, Til Prasad Shrestha, and Shrikant Poudel ordered the submission of old Supreme Court judgments and files.
What you should know
The Supreme Court has ordered the withdrawal of the missile in a review of its decision to leave an additional 20 meters of space along the riverbank.
A full bench of Justices Nahakul Subedi, Til Prasad Shrestha and Shrikant Poudel ordered the submission of old Supreme Court judgments and files. The then Law Secretary Phadindra Gautam had filed a review petition on behalf of the government, stating that the judgment of 2002, which required the construction of structures by leaving 20-20 meters of space on the banks of rivers including Bagmati and Bishnumati in the valley, could not be implemented. The order was made on Thursday during the hearing of the petition.
The government has argued that the implementation of the Supreme Court's judgment to establish a 20-meter standard on river banks in the Kathmandu Valley will be complicated for three reasons.
The government claims that it is not financially feasible to implement the judgment. Stating that there are 19 rivers in the Kathmandu Valley, the government has claimed that if the judgment is implemented, 8,304 houses and huts on both sides of those rivers and 42,000 citizens will be displaced. The government argues that the houses should be demolished with compensation while implementing the Supreme Court's judgment, but that is not financially feasible.
The government argues that if the judgment is implemented, it will also be socially unacceptable. ‘Therefore, I respectfully request that the decision to issue the said order be reviewed,’ the government’s petition states.
The petition also claims that the implementation of the decision will create constitutional, legal and practical problems. The government argues that the government should implement it gradually, while properly managing resources and means for the welfare of the citizens and the development of the country, within constitutional limits.
The government has insisted that it should also look at how many houses and lands will have to be acquired during the implementation of the decision and how much compensation will be required for such acquisition.
