BY KIRAN CHAPAGAIN
KATHMANDU, Sept 19 – The Full Court, the apex policy-making body of the judiciary on Thursday banned Nepal Bar Association (NBA) President Bishwa Kant Mainali from practicing his calling, as punishment for his controversial remark Tuesday that a judgeship was a license for corruption. An emergency meeting Thursday of the Full Court, which comprises all judges of the Supreme Court, decided to prohibit Senior Advocate Mainali from pleading in any court in the country for six months effective from Thursday.
”… Any remarks causing contempt, hatred and disrespect to the judiciary and people involved in justice delivery cannot be accepted,” the Full Court said in a decision, “The punishment was required to immediately protect the judicial administration.
It further said that Mainali’s “exaggerated allegation” was objectionable.
This is the first time in the legal history of Nepal that an NBA president has been prohibited from exercising his profession.
The Post’s repeated attempts to get Mainali’s comment failed Thursday evening as his cell phone was switched off and no one picked up the landline phone at his home.
However, NBA General Secretary Raman Kumar Shrestha said, “The NBA has taken the decision seriously and will make its official comment after a pre-scheduled meeting of its advisory committee and central executive committee on Friday.
The emergency Full Court meeting called to discuss Mainali’s public allegation against judges, took a unanimous decision after nearly five hours of deliberation.
It was widely expected in legal circles that Mainali might be clamped a contempt of court charge. “We took the harsh decision as all the judges were very angry with Mainali’s remarks,” said a Supreme Court judge seeking anonymity.
The decision came after Kathmandu Valley-based judges refused to hear any case for two hours on Thursday in a symbolic protest against Mainali’s allegation. The Full Court appealed to judges and court staff not to resort to such protests.
Earlier in the afternoon before the Full Court decision, Mainali talked to the Post in detail about the ongoing bar-bench row.
“If one feels that my remarks are subject to contempt of court, I am ready to face any punishment,” Mainali said. Mainali also criticized the protest by Valley-based judges, saying that judges did not have the right to act like a trade union. “It was not a decent move for the judges to go on strikes,” he said.
Mainali said that the NBA has no intention of defaming the judiciary and judges. “It is the responsibility of the NBA to protect the judiciary. NBA wants to protect good judges.
In the meantime, Judges Society Nepal, an umbrella forum of judges in Nepal, has also joined the Full Court and Valley-based judges in protesting Mainali’s comment. The Society, in a statement issued after an emergency meeting Thursday, termed Mainali’s remark an attack against the judiciary.
”…We have been hurt by the attack,” the Society headed by seniormost Supreme Court justice Min Bahadur Rayamajhee said.
Bar and bench relations have been strained in recent months after the NBA decided to fight corruption in the judiciary and study controversial judgments passed down by the courts. Judges have remained critical of the decision. The Full Court termed the decision to study court judgments illegal and sought clarifications from the NBA over the issue.