Nepal’s Supreme Court is drowning in unresolved cases

Bhairam Bote and Khadga Bahadur Bote traveled from Nawalparasi East to Kathmandu, seeking a final verdict on their land dispute. They had hoped the Supreme Court would settle the matter after years of litigation since 2018. Instead, justices sent their case back to the High Court for a new hearing, prolonging their legal battle for potentially years.

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Justices Sunil Kumar Pokharel and Nityananda Pandey sent the dispute back to the High Court for a fresh hearing, meaning the brothers must endure another round of litigation that could take years to resolve.

The brothers' dispute, involving a neighbor allegedly registering ancestral land illegally, has already passed through multiple judicial levels over eight years. Their experience highlights the plight of thousands of Nepalis caught in the country's judicial backlog. Another litigant, Muwahang Kirat, has faced repeated postponements for his theft case, which has also moved from district to high court and now to the Supreme Court since 2024.

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The brothers from Nawalparasi East have travelled repeatedly to Kathmandu since August 2018 to pursue a land dispute they hoped was nearing its end.

The Supreme Court is currently burdened with over 27,000 pending cases, including 41 that have remained unresolved for more than seven years. This backlog stems from a chronic shortage of justices, frequent hearing postponements requested by advocates, and an overwhelming caseload. In some tragic instances, plaintiffs or defendants die before a judgment is delivered.

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His hearings have repeatedly been postponed. On Wednesday, the case was again deferred after his lawyer requested its removal from the day’s hearing list.

Legal experts and bodies like the Nepal Bar Association and the Office of the Attorney General are calling for reforms. They propose increasing the number of Supreme Court justices from the constitutional limit of 21 and making the Constitutional Bench a permanent body. Some also advocate for redefining the Supreme Court's jurisdiction to alleviate the pressure and improve the efficiency of the justice system.

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The Supreme Court currently has over 27,000 pending cases. Among them are 41 cases that have remained unresolved for more than seven years, despite the court’s own strategic targets for clearing old cases.