“Your Honor,” these are the first words every lawyer uses to begin the process of pleading in the benches of Nepal’s court. Although Nepal Bar Association is launching an agitation against the current decision, dishonoring the judges who are the part of the recommendation, its member lawyers are pleading with the respectful words.

Bitterly divided over the recommendation, Nepalese legal community has made all efforts to dishonor and disrespect the judges. “If a judge is alright in taking the bench in Appellate Court, how can the same judge be bad to be in Supreme Court?” asked a senior lawyer.

With the decision to appoint the career judges in the Supreme Court, Nepal Bar Association, which is seeking an equal number of its members in the appointment of judges, has vehemently opposed the move of the Judicial Council.

This is also a fight between democrats and communists to control the judiciary. With the appointment of five permanent judges, the Supreme Court will be under the leadership of democratic minded people for another decade. 

“This is just a mockery of Nepal Bar Association to denounce the decision of Judicial Council,” said advocate Sushil Panta in his recent article in Annapurna Post. However, president of Nepal Bar Association Hari Krishna Karki sees this differently. “The decision of Nepal Bar Council is unacceptable to us. We will launch all out struggles against the decision,” said Karki.

“We say ‘your honor’ in court till last week when the present judges were leading appellate court. However, where is the sense of honor now? We have already dishonored them in all the levels and now we are saying those honorific words. We condemned and denounced to judges with whom we pleaded for the petition,” said a senior advocate on condition of anonymity.