Oli wants SC to discourage people's tendency to file contempt of court case against PM to earn cheap popularity

Published On: February 18, 2021 06:33 PM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

KATHMANDU, Feb 18: Prime Minister KP Oli has claimed that a contempt of court case against him was filed with the intention of earning cheap popularity.

Prime Minister Oli made the claim in his written response furnished to the Supreme Court on Thursday in relation to a contempt-of-court case filed against him. Prime Minister Oli himself reached the apex court as per the order given by a single bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Sharma on January 28.

Prime Minister Oli argued that it is necessary to check the tendency of people filing contempt of court cases against the sitting prime minister with the sole intention of earning cheap popularity. “It is in itself objectionable to file cases of individual liability such as contempt of court by referring to the words that were never said or putting the statement made in one context in another context or misinterpreting or tweaking the words or statements made,” the prime minister said in his written response.

Prime Minister Oli has reiterated that he has high regards for the court and that he as the chief executive of the country has always honored and implemented the decisions made by the court. “As a person fighting for democracy, rule of law and independent judiciary for over five decades, it is a prejudice to even imagine that I worked to reduce the dignity of the judiciary,” Oli has said in his written response. “All the verdicts and orders made by the court are always being honored and implemented by me and the government led by me.”

A contempt of court case was filed against Prime Minister Oli alleging that he had derided the 94-year old senior advocate Krishna Prasad Bhandari pleading against the dissolution of the House of Representatives (HoR) as ‘Baje Wakil’ i.e. grandfather lawyer and that the pleadings he made before the constitutional court were a ‘farce’.

A single bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Sharma had ordered Oli to be present at the court and furnish clarification over the statement made against Bhandari and the apex court.