Supreme Court (SC) justices on Friday boycotted all the benches constituted by Chief Justice (CJ) Cholendra Shumsher Rana, who entered the SC premises through an alternative gate avoiding a sit-in by the Nepal Bar Association (NBA) at the gate, including those assigned habeas corpus petitions.
CJ Rana constituted eight benches on Friday assigning 133 cases including two habeas corpus petitions. CJ Rana, who could enter the SC only at 10:50 in the morning due to the obstruction by NBA, did not assign any case to himself on Friday breaking the trend of assigning himself cases and hearing them after the Tihar festival.
The justices boycotted all the benches. The agitating lawyers also boycotted all the benches.
The justices for the past two weeks were not boycotting habeas corpus petitions but they did not hear even the habeas corpus petitions on Friday.
All the SC justices have been demanding CJ Rana's resignation following controversies including picking bench in different cases including those about HoR dissolution, accusations about CJ Rana getting a share of spoils in appointments at constitutional bodies, involvement of CJ Rana in the case about the Constitutional Council, delay in the hearing of case filed making CJ Rana a defendant, and allegations about him seeking share in the Cabinet.
The justices have been boycotting hearing for all the cases except habeas corpus petitions. CJ Rana, however, has been assigning other cases to his single bench and hearing them.
The Nepal Bar Association (NBA on Thursday decided to boycott all the SC benches on Friday citing use of force on agitating lawyers inside the SC premises on Thursday.
Lawyers protesting against Chief Justice (CJ) Cholendra Shumsher Rana demanding his resignation clashed with the police after the latter tried to stop them from entering the SC premises for demonstration on Thursday. NBA General Secretary Lila Mani Paudel suffered nose injury after being hit by a police baton.
Speaking after conclusion of the sit-in on Friday NBA Chairman Chandeshwore Shrestha said the sit-in will continue even on Sunday. "We have already prohibited Cholendra Shumsher Rana to enter the SC in capacity of CJ. We legal professionals, the bar do not consider him to be the CJ," Shrestha stated.
