The Supreme Court (SC) has asked the government the reasons for allocating Rs 60 million to federal lawmakers.
Conducting the first hearing on the writ petition filed by advocate Paras Mani Bhattarai, the constitutional bench led by Chief Justice (CJ) Cholendra Shumsher Rana on Friday has ordered the government to furnish written response.
Justices Deep Kumar Karki, Kedar Prasad Chalise, Mira Khadka and Hari Krishna Karki along with CJ Rana constitute the constitutional bench.
The petition demands revocation of appropriation of budget for federal lawmakers for development of electoral constituencies arguing it is unconstitutional.
The petition by advocate Paras Mani Bhattarai was registered by the SC on June 2 on order of the bench of Justice Dambar Bahadur Shahi.
Bhattarai had moved the petition before the presentation of the budget stating that the government is allocating budget to be spent by lawmakers in the name of Constituency Infrastructure Development Program. The petition had demanded revocation of Rs 40 million allocated to each constituency last year and called for a ban on allocation in this year's budget.
But Registrar Lal Bahadur Kunwar refused to register the petition.
Justice Shahi ordered registration of the same on May 30 after Bhattarai appealed against Kunwar's decision.
"The act of allocating Rs 60 million to the lawmakers in the 213
th point of the budget for fiscal year 2076/77 be revoked by a certiorari order as it is against Articles 1, 4, 56 and 57 of the Constitution of Nepal," the petition states.
"The petitioner's argument that the decision to give Rs 40 million to the federal lawmakers is unconstitutional on the grounds of Articles 1, 4, 56 and 57 of the Constitution needs to be decided through a bench," states Justice Shahi's order to register the petition issued a day after Dr Yuba Raj Khatiwada allocated Rs 60 million for each constituency.
Bhattarai's petition also argues that allocation of development budget to the federal lawmakers encroaches on the functioning and rights of the local, provincial and federal governments
