Nepal’s SC issues notice on House dissolution

KATHMANDU: Nepal’s Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a showcause notice to the office of the president, the office of the prime minister and the council of ministers on the recent dissolution of the House of Representatives and sought a reply within 15 days.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari, on the recommendation of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, had dissolved the House for the second time in five months on May 22 and announced snap elections on November 12 and 19. Oli is now heading a minority government after losing a trust vote in the House.

A five-member constitutional bench, headed by chief justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana, has sought clarification from the defendants, according to sources in the top court.

The legal proceedings of the politically significant case, which had been disrupted since Sunday, finally resumed on Wednesday.

It has been learnt that regular hearings will resume from June 23 after the completion of 15-day deadline provided by the court to the defendant.

As many as 30 writ petitions, including by the opposition alliance, have been filed in the Supreme Court against the dissolution, which they said was “unconstitutional”.