The Sher Bahadur Deuba faction, which lost recognition of the Nepali Congress (NC) following the party’s second special general convention, has approached the Supreme Court (SC) with a case against President Gagan Thapa and the Election Commission (EC).
Leaders of the Deuba faction filed the writ after the Election Commission’s decision last Friday to strip them of recognition and grant it to the Thapa-led faction. The Supreme Court registered their petition on Sunday, with the hearing scheduled for Tuesday.
Since Monday is a public holiday, the court will list the case for hearing on Tuesday, which also coincides with the direct nomination registration for the House of Representatives (HoR) elections on March 5.
The Supreme Court’s timing raises concerns about potential impacts on the candidacies of all parties, including the Nepali Congress. If an order is issued promptly on Tuesday morning, the elections are unlikely to be affected.
Min Bahadur Bishwakarma, head of publicity for the Deuba faction, said the writ challenges the Election Commission’s recognition of another party without consulting them. “Our writ has been registered. We expect it to be heard today and an order to be issued,” he said. “If the hearing does not take place today, we hope the Supreme Court will issue an order as soon as possible, given that tomorrow is a holiday.”
Acting President Purna Bahadur Khadka led the faction to the Supreme Court after a meeting of the dissolved Nepali Congress Central Working Committee in Sanepa on Saturday decided to challenge the Commission’s decision.
