KATHMANDU, Dec 22: The Supreme Court has acquitted former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and his party on Friday of contempt charges. A division bench of Chief Justice Om Prakash Mishra and Justice Bam Kumar Shrestha issued the verdict following a final hearing on Friday stating that there was no ground to convict him and his party. Advocate Hari Prasad Mainali had moved the apex court with the contempt of court charge against Nepali Congress party's Central Working Committee's decision last week of March 2017.

While the defamation case was pending at the court, NC leadership had decided to bring an impeachment motion in parliament against the then Chief Justice Sushila Karki. However, a single bench of Justice Cholendra SJB Rana had later stayed the impeachment motion against Karki.

Mainali, arguing that the NC central working committee's public allegation that the apex court intervened in the decision-making process of the executive, amounted to contempt of court and also undermined the judicial review power of the apex court, filed the contempt of court petition against Deuba.

On March 21, 2017, the SC had revoked the government's decision to appoint DIG Jaya Bahadur Chand to the post of Nepal Police. On March 28, 2017, the NC reacting to the court verdict in parliament termed the verdict “an intervention in the jurisdiction of the executive.”

 
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