The Supreme Court (SC) has issued a show-cause order against the Election Commission and the Press Council Nepal in response to a writ petition filed by Setopati.
The bench of Justice Shrikant Paudel issued the order while hearing the petition filed against letters from the Election Commission and the Press Council Nepal claiming that the portal violated election and journalistic codes of conduct by publishing election analyses.
The SC has also summoned both sides for discussion on Tuesday to determine whether an interim order should be granted.
"Regarding this matter, what had happened? Why should the order sought by the petitioner not be issued? If there are grounds for not issuing the order, submit a written response along with the basis and reasons within 15 days of receiving this notice, excluding travel time. The Election Commission shall respond through the Office of the Attorney General, and the Press Council shall respond either directly or through its representative," the order states.
The same bench has also issued a show-cause order and summoned parties for discussion regarding a separate petition filed against Setopati by advocate Abhash Regmi and others. They had requested an interim order to remove Setopati’s election analyses and to ban the publication of such materials. Their petition claims that Setopati’s reporting could unduly influence the exercise of fundamental constitutional rights and spread misinformation regarding the election.
Editor-in-Chief of Setopati Ameet Dhakal filed the writ petition against both the institutions on Thursday arguing that the letters issued by the Commission and the Council contravenes the Constitution.
Setopati moved the SC seeking a court order to prevent any restrictions on the publication of election-related analyses. "The petitioner requests the issuance of a prohibitory order to ensure that the election analysis prepared and published after speaking with voters in the relevant constituencies is not forced to be removed, and that upcoming analyses slated for publication are not obstructed," the petition states.
It further requests: "Until the final disposal of this petition, an interim order should be issued to not remove published materials and to not stop or cause the obstruction of materials currently being prepared for publication."
Setopati asserts that it has been publishing its election analyses within the legal boundaries defined by the law, exercising fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution, including freedom of opinion and expression, the right to practice a profession or business, the right to equality, the right to communication, and the right to information. The portal argues that the exercise and use of these constitutional rights cannot be curtailed through the creation of a code of conduct.
"The exercise and use of those fundamental rights and human rights cannot be restricted by making a code of conduct. If reasonable restrictions must be placed on their exercise and enjoyuse, the legislature can only do so by enacting a valid Act. This is proven by the phrase 'to make an Act' found in the restrictive provision of Article 19 (1) and the restrictive clause of Article 17 (2) (a)," Setopati’s petition stresses.
The petition further clarifies that the Constitution itself specifies that even when making a law to impose reasonable restrictions on the freedom of opinion and expression, it must only be done to prevent 12 specific types of activities. Setopati contends that the codes formulated by the Commission and the Council do not even fall under the legal definition of an Act.
"Even when making an Act to place reasonable restrictions on the freedom of opinion and expression, the legislature is not left entirely free but is only authorized for the purpose of prohibiting a total of 12 activities," the petition points. "The respondents cannot restrict the exercise and use of fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution against the state based on a code of conduct that does not fall within the definition of Nepal Law and was created using limited delegated authority provided by an Act."
On February 15, Setopati published an election analysis concerning Chitwan-3. Subsequently, acting on the Commission's directives, the Press Council asked Setopati for a clarification, alleging that the content violated the code of conduct.
In the meantime, another writ petition was registered at the SC seeking to stop the election analyses being published by Setopati. This petition was filed by advocates Abhas Regmi, Ayush Badal, and Akash Dhakal. They argue that the election analyses and surveys published by Setopati undermine the Journalist Code of Conduct (2016), the Election Code of Conduct (2025), and the citizen's right to privacy.
"The election analysis published by Setopati Online will exert undue influence on the enjoyment of fundamental rights provided by the Constitution, spread incorrect messages regarding the election among citizens, and create insecurity regarding the lives and property of the citizens interviewed, leading to irreparable loss... Therefore, an interim order should be issued in the name of the defendant Setopati Online to remove materials including analyses/surveys that reflect election results," the second petition mentions.
