Nepalgunj/Itahari, July 26, 2007

Incessant rains have triggered floods in various parts of the country, killing three people and affecting life.

Two children are also reported missing. Sunsari, Morang, Saptari, Siraha, Bara, Parsa, Banke have been reeling under the onslaught of floods and rains for three days. Sita Devi Bohora, 40, of Syadi in Bajhang district, died when a landslide struck her house today, police said. In Bhukduwa of Saptari, Lalan Das’ daughter Mamta, 16, was swept away by the Mahuli Khola. Ganesh BK of Dafe in Bardiya was swept away by the Pedani Khola at Khajura in Banke. Two children have gone missing in Bankatte of Banke, police said.

The flooded Rapti and Duduwa rivers have swamped most of the villages in seven VDCs of Banke. Banke CDO Krishna Acharya said police and army teams have been mobilised to evacuate the affected people to safety. Sixteen VDCs, including some in Itahari and Inaruwa municipalities of Sunsari district, are waterlogged. Three houses in Narsingh VDC were swept away. Three spurs built to prevent erosion in the banks of the Sapta Kosi river are on the verge of getting washed away.

In Siraha, Kusheshwor Mahara and 11-year-old Rina Kumari Sada of Anarma-Prapi-5 were injuredwhen a log fell on them. Harkatti, Bariyarpatti, Sukhipur, Aurahi, Tulipur, Pipra Prapi, Tenuwapatti, Eentatar, Janakinagar, Thengahi, Gairipur, Soliwarpchhbari, Kavilasi, Mahnar, Balhi, Harinagar, Khushhalaxmininia, Vidyanagar, Jijhaul and Kachnari VDCs of Siraha are waterlogged. In Saptari, 400 houses are waterlogged.

Law minister stresses seniority

Kathmandu, July 26, 2007

Minister for Law Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Narendra Bikram Nembang, today said seniority is an important factor that should be taken into account while appointing the next Chief Justice.

In an exclusive interview with The Himalayan Times, Nembang said: “I don’t believe in breaking the tradition of a seniormost judge being appointed the Chief Justice. This practice has been going on for a long time now.” The view of Nembang, who will attend a meeting of the Constitutional Council that will appoint the CJ, contradicts with what Attorney General Yagya Murti Banjade had said on July 21.

Banjade had told this daily that the CJ should be appointed on a merit basis. “If we break the trend now, problems may surface in the judiciary, and, as such, I don’t believe in bypassing a senior justice,” the Law Minister said.

A debate has started in the legal circle on the appointment of the next CJ, as incumbent CJ Dilip Kumar Paudel is retiring on September 7. Five Supreme Court Justices are eligible for the judiciary’s top post.

According to Nembang, as the judiciary is an institution that the people trust, it needs a person with long experience and skills to lead it.