Former Chief Justice Shrestha urges politics to stay out of justice

KATHMANDU: Former Chief Justice Kalyan Kumar Shrestha has urged political parties not to interfere with justice by bringing politics into the judiciary.

Speaking at an event in Kathmandu on Thursday, he emphasized that political involvement has long hindered the progress of transitional justice, resulting in delayed justice. He stated that significant changes are necessary in this regard.

He highlighted that simply forming a commission and amending a law would not be enough to address transitional justice.

Instead, he stressed the importance of establishing a competent, accepted, people-oriented, capable, intelligent, and trustworthy commission.

He urged that the commission should be driven by political will, justice, impartiality, and independence.

Shrestha noted, “In the case of transitional justice, politics has continually interfered, causing delays in justice. There needs to be a broad change in this situation. The formation of a commission and amendment of a law alone is not enough to solve transitional justice. These are minimal steps. We are in a situation where we must accept these minimal efforts, but this is not enough. We need to search for a capable, accepted, and reliable commission, one that is intelligent, competent, and trustworthy. If any unfair deals take place within the commission, the process will be rendered meaningless.”

He emphasized that political parties should focus on politics, but not influence justice, especially in matters of transitional justice where victims are suffering.

He concluded by urging that transitional justice must be victim-friendly, and integrity should prevail in handling such sensitive issues.