SC stay order on 16-point agreement against its jurisdiction: leader Nepal

TARA BAHADUR KATUWAL, KATHMANDU, June 24: Former Prime Minister and CPN (UML) leader Madhav Kumar Nepal has said the Supreme Court’s interim order not to implement the 16-point agreement reached among major political parties regarding the contentious issues of the new constitution was beyond the court’s jurisdiction.

In an interaction programme organised by Nepal Intellectuals’ Council here today, he said, “The Constituent Assembly (CA) is facing impediments to meet its mission. The constitution-drafting is going ahead in accordance with the Interim Constitution and CA regulations and the apex court deserves no authority to interfere in it. The constitution writing will continue based on the agreement.”

On a different note, leader Nepal states the relief and reconstruction efforts in the aftermath of the earthquake in the country have encountered difficulties in the absence of local representatives resulting from the prolonged halt of local body election.

On the occasion, he released a book ‘Earthquake Risk in Nepal and Concept for Sustainable Development’ published by the Council.

The book is an outcome of collaborative efforts of the National Planning Commission former vice chair Dr Dinesh Chandra Devkota, former Nepal Rastra Bank Governor Dr Yubraj Khatiwada, associate professor Dr Taranidhi Bhattarai and Engineer Binod Shrestha. Its contents are focused on post-disaster management, reconstruction, seismology and methods for building earthquake-resistant structures.