Kathmandu, October 12:

The parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today held discussions on the controversial Supreme Court verdict in the Mahalaxmi Sugar Mill’s bank loan defaulting case and said it will decide what to do next on October 17.

“We will decide to take appropriate steps on October 17 after holding a meeting with all the members of the Public Accounts Committee,” chairman of the committee, Chitra Bahadur KC, told journalists.

He said the committee does not intend to tarnish the image of the independent judiciary or challenge its supremacy, but it simply wants to take action against judges who issued a wrong verdict in the case.

The members of the PAC, Bharat Kumar Shah and Mohan Bahadur Basnet, also told the officials and legal advisors of different banks that they can file a report to the House seeking impeachment, but it is up to the full house to decide on the report.

“We have to discuss with all parties before taking any decision and then only we can initiate a process to impeach the judges,” they added.

Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank, Bijaya Nath Bhattarai, today told the PAC that the apex court verdict had supported the practice of bank defaulting.

Bhattarai further said a number of bank loan defaulters have moved the Supreme Court against several banks after the SC set a precedent by ordering removal of Mahalaxmi

Sugar Mills from the defaulter’s black list.

He said 13 petitions have already been filed in the SC against the Rastra Bank and similar trend has been seen in other banks as well.

Legal advisor of Rastriya Banijya Bank, Purnaman Shakya, and of the Nepal Bank Limited, Jogendra Keshari Ghimire, urged the PAC to take concrete steps to impeach the judges who issued the controversial verdict.

SC Justices Arjun Prasad Singh and Badri Kumar Basnet had issued a verdict removing the firm from the bank loan defaulters’ black list.

Later, Justice Kedar Prasad Giri, Badri Kumar Basnet and Top Bahadur Magar upheld the verdict. While Justice Singh retired a few months ago, Justice Basnet is retiring after two weeks.