a time when Nepali nationalism has been targeted from all sides and corners, the Supreme Court took a firm stand against foreign intervention and aggression through a landmark verdict last week which can be summarized into simply "Let Nepal Be Nepal". Vice-President Parmananda Jha who had shamelessly taken his oath in Hindi in order to show his service to the Indians has now received a fitting verdict appropriate for a person who does not abide by the Constitution of his own motherland. We salute senior advocate Bal Krishna Neupane who has now become a towering personality among lawyers of the country and the chief Justice Min Bahadur Rayamajhi along with the bench for the courage and patriotism that they have shown for this verdict.
verdict is so hard-hitting that it even compares the slight error in the oath taking ceremony of US President Barack Obama who then asked the chief justice to administer another oath the next morning. The verdict has said that the taking of oath in Hindi by Jha is unconstitutional. This naturally means that he is not legally the Vice-President of the country and he should return all the salary, perks, allowances and state security and vehicles provided to him by the country. Since his oath has been declared void, he should have the moral courage to say sorry to the nation and take another oath in Nepali or else resign immediately. At least he should stop going to his office.
Instead of doing this, talking to media following the SC verdict Jha grumbled that the SC verdict was "biased and ill-intentioned". He accused the Chief Justice of handling the case with preconception due to conflict of interest with him. Jha who is a former judge himself at the Supreme Court, even questioned the competency of the justices issuing the verdict and obliquely urged them be dismissed from the court. This is not only an ugly and a sadistic accusation but also is a naked contempt of court. How can Jha openly criticize the Chief Justice and justices of the nation? Should not Jha be tried in the court of law for contempt of court? Several journalists in the past have been questioned by the Supreme Court for criticizing the chief justice. Why is Jha being spared by the SC registrar? Is such a thing tolerated in other democracies around the world?
Everyone knows that not Hindi but Maithili and Bhojpuri are spoken by the people of the terai but just to appease the RAW and other agencies of the Government of India, the MJF ordered Jha to take his oath in Hindi. This sparked one of the largest protests in the country. Almost all towns witnessed not only the effigy of Jha but that of a dhoti-clad Dr. Man Mohan Singh burnt and kicked around the nooks and corners of cities like Kathmandu, Pokhara, Chitwan and even in the tarai districts. It had nearly turned into another anti-Indian riot. But disregarding this recent grave incident, Jha is again igniting fire certainly due to suggestions coming in from outside the country. This will impact the security of Indian businessmen within Nepal. But nobody seems to be paying attention to this factor.
The government run by a weak and a powerless Prime Minister could not even take a firm stand on this verdict instead the Prime Minister has been taking advice from junior lawyers who are saying that the constitution can be conveniently amended. Instead of abiding by traffic rules, the government is trying to change the traffic lights. What kind of a democracy is this? Only in an autocracy is the Constitution changed every time the people in power are challenged by the independent judiciary. This happened only in Nazi Germany. The interim constitution has already been amended for five times and the nation is slowly slipping into lawlessness and anarchy. If the so-called Vice President himself abuses his authority, negates the constitution, lambasts the court, minimizes the rule of law and the Prime Minister instead of immediately taking steps to implement the verdict chooses to save this culprit what can the nation expect from this Constituent Assembly which erroneously elected this kind of a Vice President? It is no wonder then that the sovereign people of Nepal are fed-up and completely tired of this rigmarole and what other proof is needed that the First Vice-President of the republic has been found guilty by none other than the apex court of the country? Is this not a proof that our republican order has failed?
verdict is so hard-hitting that it even compares the slight error in the oath taking ceremony of US President Barack Obama who then asked the chief justice to administer another oath the next morning. The verdict has said that the taking of oath in Hindi by Jha is unconstitutional. This naturally means that he is not legally the Vice-President of the country and he should return all the salary, perks, allowances and state security and vehicles provided to him by the country. Since his oath has been declared void, he should have the moral courage to say sorry to the nation and take another oath in Nepali or else resign immediately. At least he should stop going to his office.
Instead of doing this, talking to media following the SC verdict Jha grumbled that the SC verdict was "biased and ill-intentioned". He accused the Chief Justice of handling the case with preconception due to conflict of interest with him. Jha who is a former judge himself at the Supreme Court, even questioned the competency of the justices issuing the verdict and obliquely urged them be dismissed from the court. This is not only an ugly and a sadistic accusation but also is a naked contempt of court. How can Jha openly criticize the Chief Justice and justices of the nation? Should not Jha be tried in the court of law for contempt of court? Several journalists in the past have been questioned by the Supreme Court for criticizing the chief justice. Why is Jha being spared by the SC registrar? Is such a thing tolerated in other democracies around the world?
Everyone knows that not Hindi but Maithili and Bhojpuri are spoken by the people of the terai but just to appease the RAW and other agencies of the Government of India, the MJF ordered Jha to take his oath in Hindi. This sparked one of the largest protests in the country. Almost all towns witnessed not only the effigy of Jha but that of a dhoti-clad Dr. Man Mohan Singh burnt and kicked around the nooks and corners of cities like Kathmandu, Pokhara, Chitwan and even in the tarai districts. It had nearly turned into another anti-Indian riot. But disregarding this recent grave incident, Jha is again igniting fire certainly due to suggestions coming in from outside the country. This will impact the security of Indian businessmen within Nepal. But nobody seems to be paying attention to this factor.
The government run by a weak and a powerless Prime Minister could not even take a firm stand on this verdict instead the Prime Minister has been taking advice from junior lawyers who are saying that the constitution can be conveniently amended. Instead of abiding by traffic rules, the government is trying to change the traffic lights. What kind of a democracy is this? Only in an autocracy is the Constitution changed every time the people in power are challenged by the independent judiciary. This happened only in Nazi Germany. The interim constitution has already been amended for five times and the nation is slowly slipping into lawlessness and anarchy. If the so-called Vice President himself abuses his authority, negates the constitution, lambasts the court, minimizes the rule of law and the Prime Minister instead of immediately taking steps to implement the verdict chooses to save this culprit what can the nation expect from this Constituent Assembly which erroneously elected this kind of a Vice President? It is no wonder then that the sovereign people of Nepal are fed-up and completely tired of this rigmarole and what other proof is needed that the First Vice-President of the republic has been found guilty by none other than the apex court of the country? Is this not a proof that our republican order has failed?