KATHMANDU, Sept 21: At a time when lawmakers of the ruling Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) are pressuring him to resign or face impeachment, seniormost Supreme Court Justice Deepak Raj Joshee said on Thursday that he is in no mood to resign.
“I am not in any mood to resign,” Joshee told Republica. He also declined to share whether he has received any communication from the ruling party to resign or face the consequences. “I don't know. I read news reports that they want to pressure me to resign, and have been collecting signatures.”Joshee, who was rejected as chief justice by the Parliamentary Hearings Committee on August 3, resumed his duties as justice on September 10, the day newly-appointed Chief Justice Om Prakash Mishra took up office as head of the judiciary. Joshee has been handling court cases since Sept 13, when CJ Mishra began assigning him cases .
NCP pressuring Joshee to quit
The hearings committee had rejected Joshee's nomination by the Constitutional Council for head of the judiciary, citing a lack of vision on his part and also some controversial decisions that he took during his judicial career .
Members of the hearings committee from the main opposition Nepali Congress (NC) boycotted the committee meeting after ruling party members insisted on rejecting Joshee's nomination.
Following the boycott by the opposition members, the hearings committee rejected Joshee by a two-third majority vote.
The nine members of Nepal Communist Party (NCP) on the committee and a member of ruling coalition partner Federal Socialist Forum Nepal voted against Joshee as chief justice.
