Supreme Court Refuses Interim Order, Clearing Way for Sudurpaschim’s New Budget

Dhangadhi: The Supreme Court has declined to issue an interim order in a dispute over the Sudurpaschim Provincial Government’s budget, clearing the way for the government to introduce a new budget.

A joint bench of Supreme Court Justices Sapana Pradhan Malla and Balkrishna Dhakal ruled that there were no grounds to issue an interim order in the writ petition seeking a writ of certiorari filed by Advocate Maniram Upadhyay.

The budget presented to the Provincial Assembly by the previous government on Asar 1 (mid-June) for the current fiscal year had failed to pass. Although the government subsequently changed, the process of introducing a new budget had remained stalled.

The writ petition raised a legal question about whether the government is permitted to review, amend, or rewrite a budget that has already been presented to the Provincial Assembly.

With the court declining to issue an interim order, the provincial government can now proceed more easily with the budget process. The government is preparing to introduce a new budget by rewriting the one presented by the previous administration.

A Provincial Assembly meeting has been called for tomorrow to present the budget. The provincial government had also been considering the option of introducing the budget through an ordinance.