Citizenship Bill not certified for second time
President Bhandari backed away from the constitutional obligation to verify the bill that was passed by the parliament.
KATHMANDU: President Bidya Devi Bhandari has refused to certify the Citizenship Bill. She refused to verify the bill passed by the parliament for the second time.
Her move is a violation of constitutional provisions, according to legal experts. President Bhandari backed away from the constitutional obligation to verify the bill that was passed by the parliament for the second time within 15 days. Now a new type of constitutional and legal question has arisen.
Even before this, he was repeatedly accused of not fulfilling his constitutional obligations at the request of the party. Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota certified and sent the Citizenship Bill to President Bidya Devi Bhandari, who had to certify it by Tuesday midnight. The Speaker sent the Citizenship Bill to Sheetal Niwas on Sept 5.
Even before that, the President sent back the Citizenship Bill sent by the Parliament with a message at the last minute. He has the constitutional right to send back any bill for the first time.
However, there is a constitutional obligation to verify the bill passed by the Parliament for the second time and sent within 15 days.
In Article 113 of the Constitution, there is a provision regarding the verification of bills. Clause 2 of Article 113 stipulates that the bill submitted to the President for verification shall be verified within 15 days and the same shall be notified to both houses as soon as possible.
In sub-section 3 of the same article, it is said that if the bill submitted for verification needs reconsideration, the president can send it back to the house where it originated within 15 days.
In Article 113, Sub-section 4 of the Constitution, the constitutional provision states that if the President returns a bill with a message, both Houses will reconsider such a bill and if such a bill is passed and resubmitted with amendments, the President will certify it within 15 days of its submission.
The constitution does not give the president the right to reject a bill without verifying it. However, the President has challenged the clear provisions of the Constitution.
