Democracy on the decline: Nepal police personnel breach the law and moral values in containing protests

On November 11, the scene outside the Supreme Court was disturbing. At its gates were police officers from the Armed Police Force (APF) with self-loading rifles (SLRs) in hand. A few hours before their arrival, Nepal Police’s special task force (STF) was guarding the apex court where agitating lawyers were due to protest, demanding Chief Justice Cholendra Shamsher Rana resign from his position.

Once the lawyers arrived, the Supreme Court looked like a war zone with a standoff taking place. Nepal Bar Association vice-president Ishwari Prasad Bhattarai condemned the deployment of the APF. “They’ve turned the apex court into a war zone. Why do they need guns? This is wrong on so many levels,” he said at a press conference on November 18.