Justice delayed: Vacancies hamper three tiers of courts

Top court not only lacks chief justice but has five of the 21 justice posts vacant. Lower courts are understaffed too.

On May 8 the Constitutional Council recommended senior most justice of the Supreme Court Hari Krishna Karki for the post of chief justice. His nomination now needs to be approved by the Parliamentary Hearing Committee, a joint panel of both chambers of the federal parliament, before appointment. Once he is appointed, the judiciary will get its chief, a position that has been vacant for around a year and a half. All three tiers of courts are short of judges, affecting their case handling. Karki’s appointment alone, therefore, is not going to solve the problem facing the judiciary.