KATHMANDU, Dec 1: The Supreme Court (SC) has annulled the government’s decision to dissolve the Land Commission and its district offices.
A joint bench of Justices Saranga Subedi and Shreekant Paudel on Monday issued a writ in response to a petition challenging the Cabinet’s move. The Council of Ministers had decided on 9 October to scrap the Land Problem Resolution Commission and its district committees.
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Earlier, the SC had issued an interim order directing the government not to implement the dissolution. Monday’s verdict affirms that order.
The petition, filed by Land Commission Chair Hari Prasad Rijal, argued that the government’s action was retaliatory, particularly at a time when the commission’s central office and all 77 district committees collectively employ more than 350 officials and over 1,100 staff.
The Land Commission’s leadership holds a three-year mandate, and more than 1.1 million landless Dalits, landless squatters, and unmanaged settlers have submitted applications seeking land resolution.
The apex court’s decision effectively keeps the commission intact until further legal proceedings.
