Acting on petitions challenging the Nepal government’s move to extend the constituent assembly’s tenure by another three months, the Supreme Court passed an interim stay order on Thursday.
In November last year, the Supreme Court had passed an order preventing any further extensions of the CA tenure. Though the CA’s initial tenure was for two years, till date the tenure has been extended four times.
With just three days for the May 27 deadline to expire, the latest order could trigger a constitutional crisis in Nepal if lawmakers fail to draft the new statute on time.
In another related development, Nepali Congress ministers in the Baburam Bhattarai-led unity government resigned from their posts on Thursday in protest against the government move.
Several major parties have demanded Bhattarai’s resignation. htc