Kathmandu, August 28

The Supreme Court today quashed a writ filed against the government’s decision to ‘mobilise the Nepal Army in the riot hit districts’.

Advocate Roshan Kumar Jha had filed a writ of certiorari against the government claiming that only the President could mobilise army on the recommendation of the Cabinet as per the Interim Constitution and the government defied the constitutional provision and mobilised the army in the riot-hit districts.

NA had clarified yesterday that it was only assisting civil authorities upon written request of local administration and deployment of army personnel in the riot-hit areas could not be termed ‘army mobilisation’. The writ was quashed by the single bench of Chief Justice Kalyan Shrestha.

According to Bench Assistant Suresh Raj Khanal, the SC quashed the writ due to lack of evidence to support the petitioner’s claims.

The court observed that the petitioner had filed the writ merely on the basis of newspaper reports, however, newspaper reports could not be treated as evidence on sensitive national security issues like such.