Advocate Anantaraj Luitel filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court on Monday on behalf of the Nepal Media Society.
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A writ petition has been filed in the Supreme Court against the government's decision not to give government advertisements to private media. Advocate Anantaraj Luitel filed the writ petition in the Supreme Court on Monday on behalf of the Nepal Media Society.
The society is an organization of publishers of major media outlets including national dailies. The first presentation of the writ is scheduled for Tuesday.
Advocate Luitel said that the government's decision will weaken the freedom of expression guaranteed by the constitution and has challenged the decision in the Supreme Court.
In a secretary-level decision on 18 Chaitra, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers had issued a circular to the Government of Nepal, provincial governments and local governments and their subordinate bodies and all public bodies that work using public funds to publish and broadcast their information only in Gorkhapatra Sansthan, Radio Nepal, Nepal Television and government-owned media.
The writ claims that the government's decision is illegal and unconstitutional.
It is stated that the government's decision is an act to nullify the right to freedom of expression guaranteed by the Act on the Regulation of Advertisements and Articles 17, 18, and 19 of the Constitution of Nepal. The writ petition has sought a mixed injunction to quash the government's decision and circular in accordance with the Constitution of Nepal and to refrain from any action that would curtail or weaken freedom of expression.
Since it will take time to resolve the case, if the decision is not stayed by then, it will adversely affect the people's freedom of expression and the right to information, and an interim order has also been sought in the writ petition.
