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KATHMANDU, June 24: The Special Court has summoned the publisher, editor, and a reporter from Drishti weekly to appear in court within three days to provide a statement in a contempt of court case.
A special bench of six judges - Tek Narayan Kunwar, Tej Narayan Singh Rai, Ram Bahadur Thapa, Murari Babu Shrestha, Ritendra Thapa, and Bidur Koirala - issued the order on Tuesday following the publication of a news report deemed to be in contempt of court.
This marks the first time in the court's history that such a special bench has been formed in response to a published news article.
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The bench ordered publisher Shambhu Lal Shrestha, editor M.P. Subba, and the concerned reporter to personally appear before the court for a statement.
The case stems from a report published on June 22 by Drishti titled, “Bishesh adalatma bichauliyako chalkhel hatena, settingka muddama 3 mahinamai safai (Middlemen still active in Special Court: Acquittals in three months in setting-linked cases).” Nawaraj Sapkota and others subsequently filed a contempt petition against the publication.
The court has ordered the accused to explain within three days, without the possibility of requesting an extension, why they should not be punished for contempt of court. The statement must include reasons and evidence in their defense.
The court stated:
"Why should contempt proceedings and penalties not be initiated against Drishti Media Pvt. Ltd., its publisher Shambhu Lal Shrestha, editor M.P. Subba, and the concerned reporter? They must present themselves and submit a written response within three days from receipt of this summons, excluding travel days."
The summons came just days after Nepal’s judiciary faced criticism for earlier ordering NepalKhabar and Bizmandu to remove court-related stories—an order that was later reversed. In contrast, the Special Court has now issued a separate interim order instructing Drishti not to remove, modify, or alter the June 22 news article under any circumstances until further notice.
