Kathmandu, November 3:

The Nepal Bar Association today called the Judicial Council to appoint lawyers in half of the vacant positions of judges.

The call comes at a time when the Judicial Council is mulling over the appointment of judges in the Supreme Court, appellate and distrcit courts.

A delegation led by NBA president Biswo Kanta Mainali today met members of the JC Motikaji Sthapit and Basudev Dhungana at the latter’s office and placed the demand. NBA vice president Hari Prasad Upreti, general secretary Raman Kumar Shrestha and some executive members accompanied Mainali.

“There are 52 vacancies in three tiers of the judiciary. JC members have pledged to discuss our demand at the JC meeting,” NBA general secretary Shrestha told this daily.

According to Shrestha, they called the JC members to give priority to the practising lawyers. The lawyers also demanded punishment to tainted judges and promotion for those with clean image.

“We have asked the JC to take action against the tainted judges,” the NBA president said, adding that they had urged the JC to make the judges’ appointment process transparent. The lawyers also called the JC to introduce ‘reward and punishment’ system in the judiciary, according to Mainali.

The NBA delegation also asked the JC members to appoint SC judges on merit basis and not on quota system.