Six writ petitions have been submitted to the Supreme Court against the Constitutional Council’s decision to recommend Manoj Kumar Sharma for appointment as chief justice.
On Friday, Senior Advocate Dinesh Tripathi, Advocate Prem Raj Silwal, Advocate Bipin Dhakal, and others submitted six writ petitions to the Supreme Court.
However, the Supreme Court administration has not yet registered the petitions.
Supreme Court spokesperson and Joint Registrar Arjun Prasad Koirala said that the petitions are currently under review.
“Six writ petitions have been submitted. They are currently under review,” he said.
A meeting of the Constitutional Council held on Thursday recommended Justice Sharma, who is fourth in seniority, for appointment as chief justice, bypassing Acting Chief Justice Malla, Justice Kumar Regmi, and Justice Hari Prasad Phuyal.
The petitions argue that the recommendation violates the constitutional principle of separation of powers and could undermine the independence of the judiciary, demanding that the decision be annulled.
They have also demanded that Acting Chief Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla, who is first in seniority, be recommended for the post instead.
National Assembly Chairman Narayan Prasad Dahal and Bhishma Raj Angdembe, parliamentary party leader of the main opposition Nepali Congress, registered a note of dissent regarding the council's decision.
Opposition parties, including the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, have also opposed the decision. Furthermore, the decision has sparked widespread debate on social media as well.
Following the decision to recommend the fourth-ranked Sharma, Supreme Court justices also held discussions on Friday morning. The discussions reportedly delayed the publication of the court’s daily cause list.
