Kathmandu, January 9:

The Supreme Court today issued a stay order to the government authorities asking them not to hinder entry into Hotel Yak and Yeti, Durbar Marg, from the main road.

A single bench of Justice Paramananda Jha issued the order following today’s hearing on a writ petition filed by the management of the Hotel Yak and Yeti challenging the government’s decision to build a wall blocking the hotel entrance. “The court directs the government authorities not to bar entry into the hotel in any way till next order is issued,” the bench said.

The apex court ordered the Nepal Industrial Development Company (NIDC), the Ministry of Local Development and the Kathmandu Metropolitan City not to hinder entry into the hotel from the main road. Recently, the government-owned NIDC corporation had started building a wall that would hamper the entry into the hotel.

During today’s hearing, former attorney general Badri Bahadur Karki and advocates Mithilesh Kumar Singh and Komal Narayan Das pleaded on the behalf of the Yak and Yeti Hotel. They highlighted an urgent need to issue a stay order on the case as the NIDC has no authority to breach its contract with the hotel management that allows the latter to use the land.

However, advocate Sahayog Pokhrel, pleading on the behalf of the NIDC, said there was no need for an SC intervention in a dispute between two parties that had already been settled by the Kathmandu Metropolitan City.

Corporate advisor of the hotel, Maheshwor Lal Mishra, had filed a writ petition yesterday challenging the construction of wall by the NIDC that would hamper entry into hotel premises. He claimed that the NIDC had build the wall in breach of its agreement with the hotel management.

The writ petition also alleged NIDC of violating the terms of its contracts with the hotel management chalked out in 1974 and 1999 concerning the use of NIDC land as pathway.

“The latter contract in 1999 had added 20 years to the previous agreement on the use of land,”the petition said.