KATHMANDU: The Nepal Bar Association has opposed the Constitutional-Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee’s recommendation to form a Parliamentary Investigation and Monitoring Committee to investigate into the performances of chief justice, judges and office bearers of the constitutional bodies.

Issuing a press release, the lawyers’ umbrella body has said that the proposal to form a parliamentary body to monitor judges’ performance was against the concept of independent judiciary, global concept and established norms and practices.

NBA General Secretary Sunil Kumar Pokharel said the CPDCC’s suggestion create a permanent body to monitor judges’ performance could prove to be the sword of Damocles. “There are other mechanisms to make judges accountable. There is also a provision of impeachment, so there is no need to form a permanent type of parliamentary panel to monitor judges’ performance,” Pokharel said, adding that if such panel was created, judges would face a situation where they would have to face parliamentary probe for every single verdict that they would deliver.

The NBA, however, said that there could be a permanent parliamentary panel to conduct the impeachment process if such situation arose.

The lawyers’ umbrella body also wants to make it compulsory that all the cases are heard by the benches of at least two judges in the district courts and appellate courts and three justices in the Supreme Court. Pokharel said the benches of more than one judge would help improve delivery of justice.

The NBA has also said that there should not be provisions for appointing temporary justices at the Supreme Court. “But if the SC needs to appoint additional judges keeping in mind the pressure of cases, it can do so only for a fixed period of time and such justices should not be entitled perks and privileges other than those mentioned in the relevant laws,” Pokharel added.