Rudderless top court

The judiciary is not a matter to be sidelined, bargained for, or made a pawn of political powers.

The Supreme Court of Nepal has been headless for a year now, and nobody seems to be in a hurry to give it fullness. The impeachment motion registered on February 13 last year against Cholendra Shumsher Rana led to his automatic suspension, vacating the position of Chief Justice. As there is no provision of appointing a new Chief Justice until the motion reaches a logical conclusion, the top court was led by Deep Kumar Karki, the senior-most justice at the time, until October 1 last year. When he retired, Karki was succeeded by the current Acting Chief Justice, Hari Krishna Karki. In the meantime, Rana retired on December 13 due to age limit, and the top court continues to be led by Karki.