KATHMANDU, Dec 6: Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Nepal Chair Kamal Thapa has accused the government led by former chief justice Sushila Karki of encroaching upon citizens’ private property.
Writing on social platform X on Saturday, Thapa said, “Despite the Supreme Court’s order to ‘immediately halt road expansion,’ the government led by a former chief justice is attacking citizens’ private property.”
On Friday, the Supreme Court issued a short-term interim order instructing authorities to immediately halt the demolition of homes and sheds in Hetauda. However, the Road Division claimed it had not received the court’s notice and proceeded with bulldozing structures early Saturday morning.
He alleged that the government forcibly seized land—settlements that existed long before the highway was planned and properties legally owned by the public—without providing compensation, even though a bypass alternative was available.
“When a bypass exists and settlements predate the highway, forcibly seizing private property without compensation is a condemnable act,” he wrote. “Use state power if you must, demolish people’s homes—but at the very least, stop falsely labeling citizens as ‘encroachers.’”
The Supreme Court has scheduled the next hearing for December 12, directing the Road Division to maintain the status quo and refrain from enforcing the notice it issued on November 21 until a decision on the interim order is reached.