We have no objections-CJ

Chief Justice Dilip Kumar Paudel on wednesday assured Supreme Court lawyers that the SC would not object to lawyers’ absence from court proceedings once the court administration is informed in advance.

“If the lawyers can inform about their absence in advance, we have no objections,” Paudel told lawyers. “Unless you (lawyers) inform us of your absence in advance and if we allow people to be absent without prior information, people may accuse us of being involved in politics,” he told lawyers representing the Nepal Bar Association (NBA) who had gathered at the chamber of the chief justice inside the Supreme Court.

The lawyers informed the CJ they would shun all court proceedings across the country tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, except hearings on habeas corpus cases and a few other special cases.

NBA vice-president Sher Bahadur KC, general secretary Madhav Banskota, along with executive members Tikaram Bhattarai, Kedar Kari, Nagendra Rai, Bhim Dhakal, and Lilamani Paudel met the Chief Justice today to inform the latter of their boycott of all court proceedings across the country in the next two days in support of the ongoing movement for democracy.

During the meet, lawyers complained of the negative role played by justice Gauri Dhakal while handling habeas corpus cases. The lawyers complained that Dhakal had failed to force the government to produce detainees before the SC in order to test their detentions even while her bench was handling most habeas corpus cases.

Main while A second PIL was filed on Wednesday challenging the renewal of the controversial Media Ordinance. Chairman of Freedom Forum Tara Nath Dahal along with several NGOs filed the PIL.