NBA picks senior advocates Baidya and Pathak as amicus curiae

KATHMANDU : Nepal Bar Association (NBA) has recommended senior advocates Raghav Lal Baidya and Usha Malla Pathak as amicus curiae to represent the umbrella organization of lawyers across the country in the case related to the dissolution of House of Representatives at the Supreme Court.

The senior advocates duo shall represent the NBA in the HoR dissolution case as the apex court has already scheduled a continuous hearing on the case starting June 23.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Supreme Court Bar Association recommended senior advocates duo Komal Prakash Ghimire and Prakash KC as amicus curiae.

On June 10, the apex court had asked the Nepal Bar Association (NBA) and the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) to send two senior advocates each as amicus curiae to help it to pass the final verdict on the house dissolution case.

The apex court on June 9 had decided to seek the help of amicus curiae to decide the case related to the dissolution of parliament. The apex court had sought the help of amicus curiae even to decide the case when parliament was dissolved by Prime Minister KP Oli on December 20, 2020.

The apex court has said that the final hearing on the case will begin on June 23.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari had dissolved the House for a second time at the recommendation of the Council of Ministers on May 22 on the ground that both aspirants of Prime Ministerial position –KP Sharma Oli and Sher Bahadur Deuba— had failed to establish their claim to be appointed as the head of the government under Article 76(5) of the Constitution.

Challenging the decision of the president, Nepali Congress President Deuba filed a writ petition at the apex court, claiming that he should be made the PM as he commanded the support of 146 MPs. Deuba in his petition claimed that Oli, who has been continuing as PM under Article 76(3) of the Constitution, cannot claim the position of PM as he had already failed to secure a vote of confidence in the HoR.