KATHMANDU, Sept 18: A recent meeting of the Judicial Council, convened to recommend appointments to vacant judge positions in the Supreme, high, and district courts, faced ongoing controversy and was limited to addressing transfers. The meeting, chaired by Chief Justice and Judicial Council Chairman Bishwambhar Prasad Shrestha, was unable to finalize any new judge appointments.

The appointment of judges has consistently been a contentious issue, with disputes among council members preventing the recommendation of a judge during the meeting held on Saturday. As a result, the council decided to proceed with transfers, transferring seven judges from the high courts and five judges from the district courts.

Currently, there are 35 vacant positions in the high courts, including the Chief Judge, six vacancies in the Supreme Court, and 38 openings in the district courts. In a prior Judicial Council meeting held on Friday, the names of 27 judges were recommended for the high courts.

Meanwhile, only one candidate passed the examination conducted to fill 38 vacant judge positions in the district courts. Approximately 211 candidates participated in the examination held from August 1 to August 5, with Paras Mani Pokharel being the sole candidate to successfully pass.

Among the 211 participants, 15 competed for open positions (internal), seven in the open competition category, two for women's quota, two for indigenous quota, two for Madhesi quota, and one for Dalit quota for the position of District Judge. Pokharel passed the internal open written exam, and the Judicial Service Commission scheduled an interview for him on Monday.

 
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