Scanner-wielding JC

The judiciary is a revered institution and a good one is an asset to any country. However, when the judges are suspected of graft and other foul play, people become skeptical. In fact, some judges stand accused of just that, and their verdicts are flawed such as on disputes on banking and land transactions. It is alleged they are made under influence or after taking bribes. There has been a general disenchantment among sections of the public who have such complaints against the judges. Thus, the formation of a Judicial Council (JC) to investigate corruption complaints against a number of judges should help nab the guilty as well as give a clean chit to those accused falsely of indulging in such malpractices. The JC consisting of a single member is now probing more than 11 judges of the Appellate Courts and the District Courts, and has been given 45 days to complete its task. What is noteworthy here is that the Chief Justice has been provided the authority to suspend the judges engaged in unethical practices should the probe panel find the judges guilty. For long, the corrupt judges managed to evade suspension because they seemed to enjoy some sort of impunity, and they could get away with their misdeeds. It gives a sense of relief that the allegations of graft and misconduct against the judges are not being taken lightly. It is upholding the dignity of the judiciary. As these investigations are still at the preliminary stages so far, no judge has been suspended. The erring judges will not only be suspended but also face the ignominy of having their names published in the Nepal Gazette, if the Panel finds them guilty.

Among the complaints made against the judges of the Supreme Court, Appellate Courts and District Courts, the JC has found that 54 of them were baseless whereas five needed further investigation. The JC is expected to clean up the tarnished image of the judiciary that the corrupt judges are responsible for giving at the expense of judges who are honest, competent and committed to their call of duty. Because of the corrupt judges, many people have begun to lose faith in the judiciary, and as a consequence the unfair verdicts are taken to be manipulated by the powerful and those with money. Thus, it was the common man who eventually suffered from such faulty decisions as justice was then denied to them.

Although pledges and commitments have been made to provide a free and fair judiciary for long, in practice this was not so. Largely to blame for this were judges engaged in graft. It is now high time that the decisions made by the courts were closely

scrutinized and monitored so that dubious ones faced the scanner. This would also serve to

deter those who attempt to influence the decisions and also do away with the conception that it is possible to buy the verdicts. This has been the case with many corrupt judges engaged in amassing wealth through fraudulent means believing that they

could get away with them without facing any action. Now, if proved to be on the wrong side of the fence, like anybody else, they must face punishment, particularly as they are the important bastion of the respected judiciary.

Marauding ways

To reach the top must be the fancy of many a people. It must be more a matter of grave concern for the politicians who are ever-engaged in the game of who gets the plum posts, whatever may be the means relied on to achieve the result. But, apart from that, the development scenario presents a bleak picture despite all that harping on the decentralization play. The decentralization Act and rhetoric have made no difference at all. The idea was to get the job done from the bottom unlike its opposite of the top forcing its plans and programmes on the local level. The reason for the string of flops for the centralized system is obvious, but the affinity to power does not make the people who matter most want to let the authority go.

Well, the Local Development Ministry has found out in ten districts of its study that plans and policies are forced down by the ministries and the political parties from the top leaving no room for the supposed beneficiaries to reap what they desire. Besides the flouting of the relevant Act, it is but a mockery of the very right of the local people. Even when loktantra is here, and Nepal is a republic, no-nonsense initiatives are exceptions rather than the rule.