KATHMANDU: At a time when the Constitutional Council headed by Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal is doing

a homework to appoint new Chief Justice, a volley of questions are raised at many quarters, most importantly — could there be any valid

alternative to present unstable judiciary in the nation?

In the last one decade at least ten Chief Justices have lead the judiciary. Thanks largely to the unstable

judiciary under the present constitutional system.

Anup Raj Sharma, senior-most justice of the Supreme Court, will also be listed among those unstable justices, to lead the judiciary, soon.

Sharma will only lead the judiciary for three months beginning December 12, when Chief Justice Min Bahadur Rayamajhi retires. After which someone has to be appointed again.

Asked if an alternative could be found to the present unstable judiciary, Hari Prasad Uprety, Vice President, Nepal Bar Association, told The Himalayan Times: “We do not have valid and reasonable alternative.”

He, however, acknowledged that there are many defects in the present system leading to unstable leadership.”

Incumbent CJ Rayamajhi himself lead the judiciary for six months. Only in the last one decade,

altogether ten chief justices had lead the judiciary.

Except for few, most of those CJs enjoyed just year-long tenure of office. A five-year strategic plan was also devised with the idea of shielding the unstable leadership.

“These are serious problems of such unstable leadership,” Prem Bahadur Singh, Minister for Law and Justice, commented.

Singh also added that since he was the Law and Justice Minister, he was unable to take stance against anyone.

“We have to think over this pertinent issue while promulgating the new Constitution,” Singh added.

Another problem of the unstable leadership is that when a new CJ swears, he would automatically get his new team in the Judicial Council to appoint judges and reshuffle them.

“The junior staffers even take the benefit of the new appointment seeking transfer in attractive places and urban areas as well,” a senior official of the Supreme Court makes expressed his frustration over the unstable judicial leadership.

According to Basudev Dhungana, a member of the Judicial Council, discussions have been done over many shortcomings in the present system and suggestions have also been made time and again but no alternatives have been found officially.

“Though we have adopted a policy not to promote anyone in the Supreme Court but which is not a standard in the appointment of Chief Justice,” Dhungana said adding, “There is no valid alternative of the present system of seniority while appointing CJ.

People have been thinking over the alternatives but it would not be practical to apply for any person specifically but it should be settled by the Constituent Assembly inducting a new provision in the new Constitution,” Dhungana added.