Kathmandu: With the announcement by Supreme Court Chief Justice Cholendra Shamsher JB Rana to return to the Supreme Court and with Nepal Bar Association raising fresh protests against Rana to prevent him from entering the court, tussles between the bar and bench are feared in Kathmandu.
Rana was suspended nearly for 10 months over the allegations of abuse of power. Impeachment motion was filed against him to remove him from power. There were also allegations that Rana was put in house arrest.
On Wednesday, suspended Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana received a letter from the parliament secretariat that the impeachment motion filed against him is no longer effective. Earlier, he had written a formal letter seeking the latest update about the impeachment motion.
Durga Dulal of Nepal Live Today spoke to him Wednesday evening after his preparation to enter into the Supreme Court premises courted controversies. Excerpts:
After the parliament secretariat concluded the impeachment motion filed against you was ineffective, you said you would return to the Supreme Court today. Why didn’t you go?
I am trying to. I believe in the constitutional process. And it has been my duty and responsibility to follow the constitutional process. The impeachment motion filed against me is ineffective. Everyone has accepted it. In such a situation, if the government doesn’t want to follow the constitutional process, there is nothing I can do. When the government itself creates chaos and manages to stop me from entering the Supreme Court, there is nothing I can do.
“It is not fair to say that the impeachment motion is effective when the parliament secretariat says it is not. It is against the spirit of the constitution. It is forceful and unconstitutional.”
You have been suspended as the Chief Justice for a long time. How did you feel after receiving the letter from the parliament secretariat?
As I said, I believe in the constitutional process. I have faced the entire process as per the constitution. How can the government say the impeachment motion against me is active when the parliament itself failed to fulfill its duties and responsibilities. It is not fair to say that the impeachment motion is effective when the parliament secretariat says it is not. It is against the spirit of the constitution. It is forceful and unconstitutional.
You are about to retire from the service in a few days. Will you still return to the Supreme Court?
May the wisdom of the government prevail. I anticipate the government to be supportive [to create an environment to enter into the Supreme Court]. That’s it.
“I believe in the constitutional process. I followed the process. The impeachment motion is ineffective”
You wrote a letter to the parliament secretariat on Tuesday. You got the response on Wednesday. You are also trying to return to the Supreme Court. There are rumors about an alleged ‘setting’. What do you say?
Don’t say that. We need to have faith in the law and process. That’s all I want to say.
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