Senior Advocate Dinesh Tripathi has filed a writ petition challenging the Constitutional Council’s recommendation of Supreme Court Judge Dr. Manoj Sharma as Chief Justice. The Supreme Court administration issued a show-cause notice for the writ petition on April 7 and provided a certified copy of the order only on April 10. Advocate Tripathi claims the petition could not be properly registered following the show-cause notice, alleging judicial irregularity. (April 13, Kathmandu)
The very next day after the Constitutional Council endorsed Dr. Manoj Sharma as Chief Justice, a writ petition was submitted to the Supreme Court contesting the decision. Senior Advocate Tripathi argued that, contrary to constitutional principles, tradition, and judicial practice, instead of recommending the most senior justice, the council selected a judge ranked fourth in seniority. He filed the petition with the Supreme Court administration, which, however, rejected its registration on April 7 and only provided a certified copy of the rejection order on April 10.
In his writ petition, Advocate Tripathi stated: “The arbitrariness of a ‘pick and choose’ approach in the recommendation process weakens judicial independence and reveals a clear intent to subordinate the judiciary under the executive branch.” Registrar Man Bahadur Karki, responsible for court matters, issued the show-cause notice for the petition. While acknowledging the petition was registered as a matter of public interest, he questioned which specific fundamental rights of the petitioner had been violated.
Advocate Tripathi highlighted that the Supreme Court administration’s conduct indicates attempts to prolong the petition registration process. He emphasized, “The question raised about the Constitutional Council’s decision is legitimate, and such petitions ought to be registered and heard without delay.”
