18 Chait, Kathmandu. Sapna Pradhan Malla, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, has become the acting Chief Justice from today.

After the retirement of Chief Justice Prakashman Singh Raut on Tuesday at the age of 65 years, Malla, the senior-most judge, took over the post of Chief Justice of Kamu.

Article 129(9) of the Constitution of Nepal states that if the post of Chief Justice becomes vacant, the most senior judge of the Supreme Court shall hold the position of Chief Justice permanently. After the Chief Justice retires, the most senior judge will automatically become the Chief Justice.

Sapna Pradhan Malla, a senior advocate and member of the first Constituent Assembly, became a judge of the Supreme Court on 17 July 2073. When she was working in the Supreme Court for almost a decade, she set an example that had a far-reaching impact on many cases related to sexual punishment, sexual and domestic violence and constitutional matters.

The Judiciary Council sent the roster (list) of six judges of the Supreme Court who qualified to be the Chief Justice to the Constitutional Council.

At that time, the council included senior judge Sapna Pradhan Mall, judges Kumar Regmi, Hari Phuyal, Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma, Dr. Names of Nahkul Subedi and Tilprasad Shrestha were included in the list.

According to the constitution, a person who has been a judge in the Supreme Court for three years and who has not reached the age of 65 is considered to be eligible to become the Chief Justice.

The Constitutional Council must propose the name of a new Chief Justice one month before the post of Chief Justice becomes vacant. The proposed Chief Justice is appointed by the President only after the approval of the parliamentary hearing in the special committee of the parliamentary hearing.

With the dissolution of the House of Representatives due to the Genji Movement, the Constitutional Council is inactive. The Constitutional Council has not been able to recommend the name of the new Chief Justice as the posts of Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Leader of the main opposition parties are vacant.

The session of the Federal Parliament has been called only on the 19th. From that, the House of Representatives elects the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker and the leader of the main opposition party is decided, then the Constitutional Council becomes complete.

For the appointment of the Chief Justice, the Constitutional Council does not have to be complete. The hearing of the proposed Chief Justice will be held after the formation of a Joint Parliamentary Hearing Committee consisting of the members of the House of Representatives and the National Assembly. And only after the name is approved from there, the new Chief Justice is appointed. It seems that it will take at least a month to complete all these processes.

Who is Sapna Pradhan Malla?

She graduated in Law from Nepal Law Campus of Tribhuvan University and did her Masters in Law from Delhi University. And she has done her master’s degree in public administration from Harvard in America.

Before becoming a judge of the Supreme Court, Pradhan has experience working in various international organizations, law, justice and human rights. She was an expert member of the United Nations Committee against Torture. She became a member of the Constituent Assembly from 2064 to 2069.

Active in law business since 2045, she worked as a law teacher at Nepal Law Campus for two years after 2046. In 2069, she got the title of senior advocate.

During her tenure at the Supreme Court, she headed the Court Management Committee, Publication Committee, etc. Dozens of his researches and articles have been published. If he becomes the Chief Justice, he will have to retire on 30 Kartik 2085 at the age of 65.