KATHMANDU: CPN-UML lawmaker Lal Babu Pandit has sought explanation for the impeachment motion against Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana not moving forward in the parliament.
Speaking at a meeting of the House of Representatives on Monday, he said Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota should furnish the reason for not moving forward the impeachment motion against CJ Rana.
‘Does the Speaker have responsibility and obligation towards this (impeachment motion)? If yes, when will the impeachment committee get to work? When will answers be furnished for questions raised by public and the nation?” he wondered.
Reminding that he was one of the 11 members assigned to the impeachment recommendation committee, Pandit also inquired for how long the committee would have to remain idle, without responsibility.
Expressing concern about the whereabouts of the proponents of the impeachment motion, he asked, “Have the supporters gone into hiding after realizing that getting the impeachment motion passed is a tall order since the motion was brought sans necessary consultation with the opposition? Aren’t they ready to investigate the charges?”
He was of the opinion that the motion not moving ahead signified abuse of the constitutional provision.
He viewed if such constitutional provisions are misused; the people’s trust on the parliament would erode and set a negative precedent for the future.
An impeachment motion against CJ Rana was registered at the Parliament Secretariat on February 13, 2022. As many as 98 lawmakers had signed the impeachment motion against CJ Rana.
The motion has yet to move forward in parliament even as four months have passed since.
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