The Supreme Court of Nepal has ordered the online news portal sidhakura.com to remove a news report published a few days ago that allegedly incriminated Supreme Court justices. The court has given the website 24 hours to comply with the order.
A bench comprising Justices Nahakul Subedi and Tek Prasad Dhungana issued the order after conducting a hearing on a report prepared by the Supreme Court administration. The court has also instructed sidhakura.com not to publish any follow-up material or rebroadcast the content in question.
Additionally, the Supreme Court has ordered the publisher of sidhakura.com, Yuvaraj Kandel, and its editor, Nabin Dhungana, to appear before the court.
The report, prepared by Supreme Court Deputy Registrar and Joint Spokesperson Govinda Ghimire, called for contempt of court proceedings against Kandel and Dhungana. It alleged that the online portal had prepared and broadcast misleading and contemptuous materials, including an article titled “Sting operation of the meeting including SC justice for dismissing over 400 corruption cases.”
During the hearing on Monday, senior advocates Purnaman Shakya and Mohna Ansari, among others, demanded an investigation into the issue and appropriate action if it were found to be contemptuous.
The Supreme Court administration’s report also demanded immediate removal of what it termed as misleading and false materials from sidhakura.com and various social media platforms, including YouTube. It further sought an order to summon those involved in preparing and broadcasting the materials for questioning.
Citing the potential criminal nature of the act, the report also called for instructions to the relevant authorities for necessary action.
The Supreme Court’s order has raised concerns about press freedom and the ability of media outlets to report on matters of public interest.
