KATHMANDU: Acting Chief Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla has issued an order to register writ petitions that were filed in accordance with law, according to court sources.
On Monday, Malla directed that all related petitions be registered by 1 PM and listed for hearing on Tuesday.
The petitions were filed challenging the decision of the Constitutional Council to recommend Manoj Kumar Sharma for the position of Chief Justice.
Earlier, the Supreme Court administration had refused to register the writ petitions, issuing a procedural rejection. However, the applicants challenged that decision, seeking registration of the petitions.
Following the directive from the Acting Chief Justice’s secretariat, the petitions were registered after 1 PM on Monday.
A hearing will now be held to decide whether to uphold the administrative rejection or order the registration and proceed with the writ petitions.
On May 8, the Constitutional Council had recommended Sharma as Chief Justice. The recommendation was challenged in the Supreme Court by senior advocate Dinesh Tripathi and advocate Prem Raj Silwal, who argued that the decision violated seniority and established traditions.
However, the Supreme Court administration initially rejected (darpeeth) the petitions under Rule 40(1)(g) of the Supreme Court Rules. Following this, advocate Silwal filed an appeal against the rejection.
Despite repeated attempts, the petitions were not registered until the Acting Chief Justice’s directive, which has now paved the way for judicial proceedings on the matter.
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