The Supreme Court (SC) has started hearing on the writ petition filed by Patron of Nagarik Unmukti Party Nepal Resham Chaudhary challenging the cancellation of his candidacy on Sunday.
The hearing commenced on Sunday before a bench including Justices Sharanga Subedi and Tek Prasad Dhungana. The hearing had previously been scheduled before a bench of Justices Sapna Pradhan Malla and Abdul Aziz Musalman last Sunday, but the bench could not find time to conduct the hearing.
Chaudhary filed the petition on January 23 seeking to overturn the Election Officer's decision to scrap his candidacy for the House of Representatives (HoR) election from Kailali-1. The Election Officer's office had officially invalidated his nomination on January 22 stating that his candidacy could not be upheld under current law and directing that further action follow legal protocols.
Previously, during a preliminary hearing on January 25, a bench of Justice Bal Krishna Dhakal issued a show-cause order to the defendants and summoned both parties for a discussion regarding an interim order. While the case was subsequently scheduled for January 29 before a bench of Justices Dhakal and Nrip Dhwoj Niraula, the previous order remained in effect as responses to the show-cause order had not yet been submitted.
Election Officer Dev Raj Bharati explained to Setopati that the decision to disqualify Chaudhary was based on three primary grounds. First, a SC verdict has upheld a life imprisonment sentence against him which constitutes a legal disqualification for candidates under the HoR Election Act.
Second, the office cited a prior Election Commission decision declaring him ineligible even to be a member of a political party. Finally, although Chaudhary received a presidential pardon for his remaining jail term, the underlying conviction and the nature of the sentence remain unchanged.
Chaudhary had received a presidential pardon upon the recommendation of the government following his conviction in the Tikapur incident. However, under the HoR Election Act, individuals sentenced to life imprisonment are barred from contesting elections.
A similar situation had occurred during the 2022 elections when Chaudhary attempted to run from Bardiya-2 while still in prison. His candidacy was disqualified then as well. Following that disqualification, his father Lalbir Chaudhary ran as an independent candidate before joining the Nagarik Unmukti Party where he remains a member.
