WITHOUT F EAR OR FAVOUR Nepal’s largest selling English daily Vol XXVIII No. 319 | 8 pages | Rs.5 O O Printed simultaneously in Kathmandu, Biratnagar, Bharatpur and Nepalgunj 21.0 C -1.0 C Saturday, January 16, 2021 | 03-10-2077 Nepalgunj Jumla Delhi discusses all but boundary row in talks with Foreign Minister Gyawali As hinted, India showed reluctance to get into the issue despite the Nepali side putting the matter on the table. SURESH RAJ NEUPANE IN NEW DELHI & ANIL GIRI IN KATHMANDU JAN 15 Nepal and India on Friday held the sixth meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Commission in New Delhi, discussing a variety of bilateral issues, but there was no concrete outcome on the boundary dispute, an issue which was high on the agenda of the Nepali dele- gation. Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali and his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar co-chaired the meeting. According to a statement issued PHOTO COURTESY: EMBASSY OF NEPAL, NEW DELHI after the meeting by the Embassy of Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali and his Nepal in New Delhi, both sides dis- Indian counterpart S Jaishankar in Delhi. cussed the boundary matter and expressed commitment to early com- held a restricted meeting for about an pletion of boundary works in the hour “to set the tone of the meeting” POST PHOTO: ELITE JOSHI remaining segments. where Gyawali had raised the bounda- A child plays at a park in Naxal, Kathmandu on Friday. Most schools in the Valley are still closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and cold weather. “During informal and formal meet- ry issue and early submission of the ings, the Indian side insisted that the Eminent Persons Group’s report, issue be given to the foreign secretary among others. level mechanism first to deal with,” India’s Ministry of External Affairs said a member of the Nepali delega- said in a statement that both sides dis- tion who participated in the meeting. cussed several areas of cooperation, Constitutional Bench to continue hearing “The Indian side was of the view that including in the areas of connectivity, the issue then can be followed up by economy and trade, power, oil and gas, the Boundary Working Group. So no water resources, political and security serious discussion took place on the issues, border management, develop- boundary issue.” ment partnership, tourism, culture, petitions against House dissolution Prior to the Joint Commission education and capacity building. meeting, Gyawali and Jaishankar had >> Continued on page 2 The five-member bench led by chief justice rejects calls for sending the writ petitions to an extended full bench, saying the issue warrants serious constitutional interpretation. BINOD GHIMIRE Constitutional Bench. KATHMANDU, JAN 15 The lawyers arguing on behalf of the defendants said that the very The Constitutional Bench on Friday demand for an extended full bench is decided to continue hearing the writ against the spirit of the constitution, petitions against Prime Minister KP which allows the Constitutional Sharma Oli’s move of dissolving the Bench to take decisions on issues House of Representatives itself, turn- related to the interpretation of the ing down lawyers’ demands that they constitution. be sent to an extended full bench. Senior advocate Bishnu Bhattarai The five-member bench, led by said extended full benches heard the Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher writs of the House dissolution in the Rana, said that since the issue needs past because there was no provision “serious constitutional interpreta- POST FILE PHOTO for the Constitutional Bench then. tion”, the petitions don’t need to be The bench has said it will conduct In 1994 and 2002, the Supreme Court sent to an extended full bench. continuous hearing from Sunday. had approved the moves of then prime “The bench said there is no need to ministers Girija Prasad Koirala and send the writs to the extended full December 20. The recommendation Sher Bahadur Deuba of dissolving the bench,” Bhadra Kali Pokharel, spokes- was approved by the President the House of Representatives, while it had person for the Supreme Court, told the same day. rejected Manmohan Adhikari and Post. “The Constitutional Bench will Lawyers arguing on behalf of 12 Surya Bahadur Thapa governments’ conduct the regular hearing on the petitions challenging the House disso- similar moves in 1995 and 1998, respec- writs against the House dissolution.” lution had demanded that the writ tively. All the decisions were taken by Though the bench generally sits petitions be heard by an extended full an extended full bench comprising 11 twice a week—on Wednesday and bench. But those arguing on behalf of Supreme Court justices. Friday—continuous hearing will be the defendants—the Office of the “If an extended full bench is formed, conducted starting Sunday, given the Prime Minister and Council of then that will mean we the chief jus- gravity of the issue, according to Ministers and the Office of the tice’s decision to send the writs to the Pokharel. President—said that since the issue Constitutional Bench was wrong,” Oli had recommended that the demands constitutional explanation, said Bhattarai. President dissolve the lower house on the writs must be heard by the >> Continued on page 2 With a different letter than one sent by the Cabinet, Oli adds to the confusion While the House dissolution decision signed by the chief secretary does not cite articles, the one undersigned by Oli includes those, thereby creating grounds to suspect foul play. TIKA R PRADHAN & BINOD GHIMIRE Prime Minister Oli and the other by Oli which has cited the articles. KATHMANDU, JAN 15 Chief Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi. Both the letters are dated Poush 5, Both are addressed to the Office of 2077 (December 20, 2020), the day the The mess Prime Minister KP Sharma the President regarding the decisions House dissolution decision was rec- Oli has created, it seems, is going to of the Office of the Prime Minister ommended to the President. take a while before it is cleared up. and Council of Ministers on House The letter undersigned by Prime After dissolving the House of dissolution and midterm polls. Minister Oli, however, has a seal which Representatives and calling snap While the one signed by Bairagi does says the copy of the Cabinet decision polls, Oli has thrown the country into not say under which articles the House produced for the purpose of the political uncertainties, but the way dissolution was recommended, the Supreme Court. The seal has the date things have surfaced shows he has other signed by Oli cites Articles 76 (1), of Poush 20, 2077 (January 4, 2021). been bent on creating more chaos. (7) and Article 85, which the Office of After the first hearing on December On Friday, two different letters were the President too had cited while 25 on 13 petitions against the dissolu- leaked to the media—one signed by endorsing the House dissolution move. tion, a five-member Constitutional During Friday’s hearing on bench led by Chief Justice Cholendra the writ petitions against the Shumsher Rana had issued a show House dissolution move, senior cause notice and demanded the copies advocate Raman Shrestha said of the Cabinet decision from the that the Cabinet had not cited defendants—the Office of the Prime any articles while recommend- Minister and Council of Ministers ing the House dissolution. and the Office of the President. “How, then, did the President The Office of the Prime Minister cite Articles 76 (1), 76 (7) and 85?” and the Office of the President had Shrestha questioned. furnished their original documents to It, however, did not take long the Supreme Court regarding the for another letter to appear in House dissolution move, including the public domain—this one their clarifications, on January 3. undersigned by Prime Minister >> Continued on page 2 C M Y K SATURDAY, JANUARY 16, 2021 | 02 NATIONAL Pyuthan District Hospital fails to provide effective health services Most people in Pyuthan are compelled to seek medical care elsewhere as doctors are not always present at the district hospital. GIRU PRASAD BHANDARI “We have also informed the chief PYUTHAN, JAN 15 district officer of Pyuthan about the condition of the hospital. On Monday, Buddhiram Sarki, 73, of Baddanda in when a team of municipal officials Ward No. 4 of Pyuthan Municipality reached the hospital, there were only took his 71-year-old wife Sukundra to two health workers--a health assistant the District Hospital in Bijuwar a few and an auxiliary health worker,” days ago. His wife is suffering from Bhandari said. movement disorders. The hospital referred Sukundra to the local medical clinic citing that the hospital could not treat her there. A The posts of medical doctor of the clinic then referred her to the Butwal-based Lumbini City specialists at the Hospital and Medical Science Pvt Ltd. POST PHOTO: BEEJU MAHARJAN She was taken to the city hospital in hospital have been Members of the Nepal Red Cross Society perform an earthquake safety drill to mark the 23rd National Earthquake Safety Day at Bode, Bhaktapur on Friday. an ambulance covering a distance of 133 kilometres by road. vacant for long time. Buddhiram says after three days at the city hospital, he could no longer afford to keep his wife admitted. The District Hospital in Pyuthan is “I spent Rs 120,000 at the hospital in a 50-bed health institution with two Delhi discusses all but boundary row in talks with ... three days. I could not bear the treat- positions of medical specialists and ment cost so I moved my wife to five medical officers. The positions of >> Continued from page 1 could not immediately agree on which have established the Boundary Nepali Embassy, the Nepali side Gurans Hospital in Butwal where the medical specialists have been vacant The meeting of the Joint mechanism should be entrusted with Working Group and a mechanism at thanked the Government of India for cost of treatment is less,” he said.