Court refuses to issue interim order

Kathmandu Jan 23-The Appellate Court of Lalitpur on Monday has refused to issue interim order as demanded by the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) and has instead asked the Election Commission (EC) to settle the row.

A division bench-- comprising Chief Judge at the Appellate Court, Rana Bahadur Bam, and Judge Durga Pasad Upreti-- held that since the issue fell under the jurisdiction of the EC and the EC was yet to deliver its verdict, there was no need to issue interim order as demanded by the RPP. The court said as the Election Commission is the constitutional body authorised to handle all matters related to election. At a time when the Election Commission is handling the RPP rift, there is no need to issue a stay order on the case, the court said.

In a writ petition filed at the Appellate Court, chairman Rana and 20 central committee members of the RPP had demanded that the court asks the EC not to issue the party’s election symbol ‘plough’ and flag to the dissident group led by Home Minister Kamal Thapa.

The dissident faction, in a ‘special general convention’ of the party organized in the capital early this month, announced that Rana had been deposed from the party’s top post and that Home Minister Thapa had been ‘elected’ its new chairman.

Rana, however, dismisses the entire exercise as a farce and against the statute of the party.