Constitutional Council convenes today for Chief Justice recommendation

KATHMANDU: A meeting of the Constitutional Council, scheduled for Monday evening, is expected to make recommendations for the appointment of Chief Justice.

The post of Chief Justice has remained vacant since February 13, 2022, when an impeachment motion was brought against Cholendra Shumsher Rana. Senior-most Justice Deepak Kumar Karki served as the acting Chief Justice following Rana’s suspension. Karki retired in October of last year. Hari Krishna Karki has been serving as the acting Chief Justice since then.

Nepal Bar Association has been organizing protest programs demanding the early appointment of the Chief Justice.

Sources at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers say that the meeting was called following a discussion between Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and the leader of the main opposition party in parliament, CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli, on Saturday.

The previous meeting of the Constitutional Council ended inconclusively after Oli insisted that parliamentary committees be formed first. “There is no point in recommending the Chief Justice now as the Parliamentary Hearing Committee, which must endorse the recommendation, hasn’t been formed yet,” Oli stated after the meeting.

According to the constitution, the committee must endorse the recommendation by a two-thirds majority for the appointment.

The Constitutional Council, chaired by the Prime Minister, consists of the Chief Justice, Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Justice, National Assembly Chairman, and the leader of the main opposition party as members. However, the Minister for Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs serves as a member in meetings to recommend the Chief Justice.