KATMANDU: Petitions have been filed in Nepal’s Supreme Court challenging the formation of an interim government and the dissolution of parliament following last month’s uprising, a court official said Wednesday.
The youth-led protests, which erupted on September 8 over a brief social media ban, economic hardship and corruption, quickly morphed into nationwide fury after a deadly crackdown.
Two days of violence left at least 73 people dead, the parliament and government offices burned down, and forced the government’s collapse.
Former chief justice Sushila Karki, 73, was nominated as prime minister and the parliament was dissolved shortly after.
But the legality of those moves is now under scrutiny.
“Eleven petitions have been filed stating that the formation of the new interim government and the dissolution of the lower house is unconstitutional,” Nirajan Pandey, the court’s information officer told AFP.
Pandey said procedures were underway to register the petitions, after which hearings would be scheduled.
A day after the dissolution, leaders of eight political parties issued a joint statement calling for the reinstatement of parliament.
“It was not envisioned in the constitution that such a situation would arise,” lawyer Dinesh Tripathi said.
“It is a challenge, but the court will decide.”
KP Sharma Oli, the 73-year-old Marxist who served as prime minister four times before his ouster, has called for the reinstatement of the parliament “that was unconstitutionally dissolved,” in an address to supporters earlier this month.
The Supreme Court building was also damaged by fire during the protests, and only resumed full operations on Tuesday, with many sections operating under a tent.
Legal battle looms over Nepal’s post-uprising interim government
https://arab.news/gtsk6
Legal battle looms over Nepal’s post-uprising interim government
- Youth-led protests over economic hardship and corruption in September forced the government’s collapse
- A day after the dissolution, leaders of eight political parties calrrg for the reinstatement of parliament
North Korea and China to resume passenger train service after six-year gap
- China’s railway authority said in a notice that Beijing-Pyongyang trains will operate four times a week
- The resumption from March 12 will “further promote China-North Korea travel, trade and economic cooperation”
SEOUL/BEIJING: Tickets for the first passenger train in six years from Beijing to North Korea’s capital, Pyongyang, were sold out ahead of its March 12 departure, an official ticketing office in Beijing said on Tuesday.
The resumption of the rail service, suspended since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, revives a critical transport link between the largely isolated North Korea and its primary economic ally.
Tickets for the journey — restricted to travelers holding business visas — were purchased by entrepreneurs, government officials and reporters, according to the Beijing ticketing office. Tickets were still available for the next service, scheduled for March 18.
NORTH KOREA STILL LARGELY CLOSED TO TOURISTS
China’s railway authority said in a notice that Beijing-Pyongyang trains will operate four times a week in both directions on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday while Dandong-Pyongyang trains will run daily.
The resumption from March 12 will “further promote China-North Korea travel, trade and economic cooperation, and people-to-people exchanges to enhance mutual well-being and friendship,” the notice said.
North Korea remains closed to most foreign tourism, with limited exceptions largely for Russian tour groups under restricted arrangements, according to travel agencies organizing trips to the country.
Before the pandemic, Chinese visitors made up the largest share of foreign tourists to North Korea, the agencies said. Tour organizers said on Monday that North Korea had canceled next month’s Pyongyang Marathon for unspecified reasons. The race is one of the few events that has been open to international participants in the isolated state.
