Hearing on writ petition filed by suspended Gandaki Province Assembly member Devkota concludes, verdict likely today

KATHMANDU, June 24: The debate on a petition filed at the Supreme Court by Gandaki Province Assembly Member Phanindra Devkota, who remains suspended, ended on Monday. Due to the lack of time, the debate on the case could not be completed on Sunday.

Phanindra Devkota informed Republica that the decision on the case was likely to come today.

Earlier, after Devkota gave his vote of confidence to Nepali Congress (NC) Chief Minister Surendra Pandey in Gandaki Province, the Maoist Center, under whose election symbol Devkota had won the elections, recommended action against him, sending a letter to the Speaker of the province, Krishna Prasad Dhital.

Devkota was suspended after Speaker Dhital read out the action against him in the provincial assembly. However, the suspended provincial assembly member Devkota filed a petition at the Supreme Court on June 6, claiming that he was elected from Gorkha using only the election symbol of the Maoist Center but he was not an MP of the Maoist Center. 

Devkota has maintained that he is an MP of his party, the Nepal Samajwadi Party, even though he fought the elections on the election symbol of the Maoist Center.