As the country moves toward forming a new government, the judiciary is also preparing to receive new leadership. Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki recently addressed the Gen Z movement, highlighting the successful completion of the Prime Minister’s role through timely elections. At the same time, the judiciary is poised to appoint a new female Chief Justice.
With the Rastriya Swatantra Party—which secured nearly a two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives elections—making final preparations to appoint Balen Shah as Prime Minister, preparations are also underway for the appointment of the next Chief Justice. Senior-most Supreme Court Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla is expected to take on the role as the new head of the judiciary once the new government is formed.
Current Chief Justice Prakash Man Singh Raut is set to retire on Chaitra 18 due to the mandatory retirement age of 65. As per tradition, Chief Justices typically go on leave about a month before the end of their tenure, and Raut has already refrained from hearing cases for around 10 days. He has only about two weeks left in office.
The Judicial Council has already recommended six names for the position of Chief Justice. Alongside Sapana Pradhan Malla, the recommended candidates include Kumar Regmi, Hari Prasad Phuyal, Manoj Kumar Sharma, Nahakul Subedi, and Til Prasad Shrestha. According to the Constitution, a Supreme Court justice becomes eligible for the Chief Justice position after serving for at least three years.
Currently, the Supreme Court has 19 justices, including the Chief Justice, while the Constitution allows for a maximum of 20 justices in addition to the Chief Justice.
As per Article 129 of the Constitution, the Constitutional Council recommends the Chief Justice to the President. The Council is chaired by the Prime Minister and includes the Chief Justice, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chairperson of the National Assembly, Leader of the Opposition, and Deputy Speaker of the House.
At present, the Council has only three members, as positions such as Speaker, Deputy Speaker, and Leader of the Opposition are yet to be filled following the recent elections. The Constitution also allows the Law Minister to attend Council meetings related to the Chief Justice appointment.
Following longstanding tradition, the senior-most justice is typically appointed as Chief Justice. Accordingly, Sapana Pradhan Malla is almost certain to become the next Chief Justice. Preparations for the Constitutional Council meeting required for her appointment are expected to be initiated by the incoming Chief Justice herself, as per established practice.
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