Supreme Court Verdict: Rabi Lamichhane Loses Both Posts of Lawmaker and Home Minister

Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane has lost both the posts of minister and lawmaker after the Supreme Court verdict on the cases relating to his citizenship.

He lost both posts after a constitutional bench of Supreme Court comprising Acting Chief Justice Hari Krishna Karki and Justices Bishwombhar Prasad Shrestha, Ishwor Prasad Khatiwada, Dr Anand Mohan Bhattarai and Anil Kumar Sinha issued the verdict on Friday.

The verdict read, "After renouncing the US citizenship, Lamichhane was not found adhering to the legal process to acquire the Nepali citizenship again. So, he did not deserve to be the candidate of the member of House of Representatives nor could hold the lawmaker's post. With this, a certiorari order is issued as per Article 133 (b and c) and Article 137 of Constitution of Nepal by scrapping all activities as making Lamichhane an election candidate, announcing his election victory, and conferring him the certificate."

Lamichhane had taken the Nepali citizenship by descent in 2050BS, while he had taken the US citizenship in 2070BS. Similarly, in course of giving up the US citizenship in 2075BS, he had informed about it to the US Embassy in Nepal in Asar 14, 2075BS. It proves that he renounced the US citizenship. There is no debate in it either, the verdict stated.

"For acquiring the Nepali citizenship again Lamichhane was found not meeting the criteria as per section 11 of Nepal Citizenship Act, 2063 and Rule 11 of Nepal Citizenship Regulation, 2063," the SC decision added.

The SC reminded that Article 13 of the Constitution of Nepal has finely mentioned that acquisition, re-acquisition and termination of citizenship will be as per the federal law.

"Section 10 of Nepal Citizenship Act, 2063 has provisioned that if anyone takes foreign citizenship on his own or if he/she bears Nepali and foreign citizenships at once and does not choose the Nepali citizenship, he/she will remain no more a Nepali citizen," SC verdict reiterated.

Advocates Rabiraj Basaula, Yubraj Poudel and others had filed a writ petition at SC against Home Minister Lamichhane, questioning his eligibility for the post of lawmaker. In the petition, they had argued that Lamichhane formed a political party, got elected to the member of House of Representatives without acquiring Nepali citizenship, so his lawmaker's post need to be annulled.