Supreme Court Overturns Ban on Government Ads for Private Media

The Supreme Court of Nepal has overturned a government decision that banned government funded advertisements from being given to private media houses. A two judge panel consisting of Justices Sharanga Subedi and Nripadhwaj Niraula officially cancelled the government's previous directive, which had been put in place on April 1, 2026 (Chaitra 18, 2082).

The legal battle began after the Nepal Media Society filed a petition challenging the government's restriction. The group's legal representative, Advocate Anantraj Luitel, praised the court's historic ruling, stating that justice has finally been served to all private media companies across the country.

During the court hearings, lawyers representing the private media industry argued that cutting off government advertisements was an unfair attempt to financially squeeze and silence private news outlets. They pointed out that according to the country's advertising laws, public advertisements should be shared fairly across different media platforms. They also argued that the government cannot legally favor state media while leaving private organizations behind.

With this court order, private media outlets will once again be legally eligible to receive and broadcast government advertisements on an equal distribution.