KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court (SC) has stopped the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) from demolishing Bagdurbar and construct a new one in its place.
The historic building was destroyed by the Gorkha Earthquake in 2015 that claimed over 10,000 people and demolished several infrastructures. The KMC has faced a legal hurdle in its decision to rebuild the palace.
A division bench comprising judges Anil Kumar Sinha and Sapana Pradhan issued the order to stop KMC from demolishing the building. The apex court was responding on a writ filed at SC.
The order also cancelled a tender granted to demolish the palace building. “The KMC has the right to use the property, but not its ownership,” the SC stated in its order. The SC issued a mandamus to form a team of experts under the convenorship of Director General of Department of Archeology within the next 15 days of the order for the protection of Bagdurbar.
The KMC had planned to undertake the rebuild project at a cost of 1.5 billion.
According to historian Dinesh Raj Pant, the original building of the Bagdurbar was build in around 1868 BS and the present three-storeyed structure spreading in 18 ropanis of land is not the original one. The original structure was spread in a larger area.
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