Kathmandu: Two separate writ petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court today, seeking the cancellation of the appointment of CPN (UML) parliamentary party leader Saroj Kumar Yadav as the Chief Minister of Madhesh Province. The petitions were submitted by Rakki Prasad Sah and Sujit Yadav, residents of different municipalities, who argue that the formation of the new government violated specific constitutional provisions.
According to National News Agency Nepal, Rakki Prasad Sah, from Janakpurdham-16, currently residing in Kathmandu Metropolitan City-35, and Sujit Yadav, from Siraha Municipality-20, have named Province Chief Sumitra Subedi Bhandari and the Office of the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers as respondents in their writ petition. They claim that the appointment contravenes Article 168 (2) and (3) of the Constitution of Nepal.
Saroj Kumar Yadav was appointed as the Chief Minister on Sunday and was sworn in by Province Chief Sumitra Subedi Bhandari at a hotel in Bardibas on Monday morning. The appointment has now come under judicial scrutiny due to the claims made in the petitions.
In a related development, Arjun Sah, a resident of Sakhuwa Prasauni Rural Municipality-6 in Parsa district, has also filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court. He is demanding that the Chief Minister’s appointment be nullified, adding another layer to the legal challenges facing Yadav’s appointment.