Controversy Over Oath In Hindi

Siddhi B. Ranjitkar

On Sunday, August 30, 2009, the last day of the deadline set by the Supreme Court of Nepal for the Vice-president taking an oath in Nepali, the drama of the language issue has reached the climax the Vice-president refusing to take an oath in Nepali while the President, Prime Minister and the Speaker of the legislator waiting for him to come to take an oath. The President has quietly accepted the Vice-president taking oath in Hindi from the President on July 23, 2008 although it is unconstitutional. Then, somebody took it to the Supreme Court of Nepal that ruled it unconstitutional on August 9, 2009. Then on August 23, 2009, the Supreme Court ordered the Vice-president to take an oath in Nepali within seven days otherwise his duty would be suspended. It is the beginning of fighting of nationalistic Nepalis against the pro-Indian groups.

After the midnight of August 30, 2009, Vice-president Permananda Jha has relapsed into the status of a Vice-president-elect following the ruling of the Supreme Court of Nepal. This has created a vacuum at the Vice-presidency. If something goes wrong to the President, nobody will be there to takeover the position of President immediately.

On July 23, 2008, while the Vice-president was swearing in by President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav in Nepali, the public found Vice-president-elect Permananda Jha was taking the oath in Hindi. However, Jha has said that he has signed off on the oath written in Nepali for a record. Thus, Jha has tricked the President to complete the ceremony of taking the oath of office of Vice-president in both Nepali and Hindi. However, it has triggered the nation-wide protest against the oath in Hindi taken by the Vice-president. The President did not bother to correct the Vice-president even after the nation-wide protest and anger against the Vice-president forcibly imposing Hindi in the official business of the Government of Nepal.

Many constitutional analysts questioned how the President could accept the oath in Hindi taken by the Vice-president, as it goes against the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007. Vice-president Jha has bullied the Constitution but the President who has also taken the oath of safeguarding the constitution has failed in preserving the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 not stopping the Vice-president-elect Jha from taking the oath in Hindi.

As the guardian of the Constitution of Nepal, President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav could have stopped the then-Vice-president elect Permananda Jha from taking the oath in Hindi and told him either take the oath in Nepali complying with the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 or postponed the oath-taking ceremony.

Speaking at the Interaction Program held at the Reporters’ Club in Kathmandu on August 24, 2009, Minister for Law and Justice Prem Bahadur Singh has said that the government is determined to enforce the ruling of the Supreme Court of Nepal on the need for Vice-president Permananda Jha taking an oath in Nepali; and the Vice-president will make his position honorable taking an oath in Nepali.

On Monday, August 24, 2009, addressing a program on training the party activists of Rapti zone in Tulsipur of Dang Chairman of Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist and Leninist Jhalanath Khanal has said that Vice-president Jha’s oath of office in Hindi not the official language of Nepal has been inappropriate; so, Jha needs to honor the Supreme Court’s ruling on this case and re-take an oath in Nepali.

On August 25, 2009, the meeting of the leaders of the Madheshi People’s Rights Forum-Democratic, Madheshi People’s Rights Forum, Tarai Madhesh Democratic Party and various groups of Nepal Sadbhavana Party held at the parliamentary office of the Tarai Madhesh Democratic Party at Singhadurbar, Kathmandu has decided that the ruling of the Supreme Court of Nepal against the Vice-president taking oath in Hindi is prejudiced and therefore is not acceptable to them.

Then, the President called Vice-President over to his office and urged him to take an oath in Nepali on August 25, 2009. However, in doing so, the President has neither safeguarded the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 nor he has complied with the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007.

On Wednesday, August 26, 2009, members of the 'Joint Struggle Committee for Linguistic Rights' of the Federation of the Nepalese Indigenous People has met with Vice-President Jha and suggested him to take an oath of office in Maithili: his mother tongue rather than in Nepali.

On August 26, 2009, addressing a press meet held by Revolutionary Journalists’ Association, Abadh State Committee in Butwal former Prime Minister Prachanda has advised Vice-president Permananda Jha to resign from the position rather than taking an oath in Nepali; he also has said that he has resigned from the position of Prime Minister after the President directly writing a letter to the Chief of Army staff.

On August 28, 2009, Prime Minister Madhav Nepal has written a letter to Vice-president Permananda Jha requesting him for retaking an oath in Nepali complying with the order of the Supreme Court of Nepal and for cooperating on safeguarding the democratic ideals and values. However, Madhav Nepal is made Prime Minister disregarding the democratic values and norms.

In the letter to the Vice-president, the Prime Minister has said that the Nepalese people have the aspiration for enforcing the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 in the current transitional period, safeguarding the honorable position of the Vice-president, and enforcing the order of the Supreme Court of Nepal complying with the democratic values and ideals.

The Prime Minister has also informed the Vice-president that the Council of Ministers has passed the Amendment Bill to make a provision for taking the oath of office of the President, Vice-president and all other officer holders of the constitutional bodies in their mother tongues in the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007, and has submitted it to the legislature for an amendment.

On August 28, 2009, Vice-president Permananda Jha has filed an appeal through the Attorney General at the Supreme Court of Nepal for annulling the order of the Supreme Court of Nepal issued on August 23, 2009 to the Vice-president stating to take an oath of office in Nepali within seven days otherwise his duty would be suspended.

The Supreme Court has not registered the appeal of the Vice-president but one of the officials has signed on the back of it giving the evidence of the receipt of the appeal.

In the appeal the Vice-president has said that wrongly interpreting the subject matters not mentioned elsewhere in the Constitution, issuing the order of annulling the previously taken oath going against the values and ideals of the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007, the Supreme Court has hit hard on the rights to language. He also has stated that not to take orally an oath in any language other than Nepali is neither mentioned in the Interim Constitution nor a precedent for it has been set. So, in this circumstance, orally taking an oath (in Hindi) is his fundamental rights. In view of the Supreme Court’s order is an insult to the multi-linguistic Nepalese people, and is possibly seriously adversely affecting the national integrity and is bringing flaws and faults in the country, he requested the Supreme Court of Nepal for annulling the unconstitutional order.

The Vice-president has also stated in his appeal that he has signed off on the oath written in Nepali and has kept it in the state archives; the oath has not been annulled, and has been safely kept as the evidence; however, the Supreme Court has unnecessarily given importance to the oral oath in Hindi and has issued a prejudiced order.

The Vice-president has also said in his appeal that the Supreme Court however has not paid any attention to the oath taken by current Prime Minister Madhav Nepal and former Prime Minister Prachanda not fully complying with the format prescribed by the constitution; however, he has signed off on the oath written in Nepali exactly in the prescribed format but the Supreme Court has not paid any attention to it rather has issued an unclear, unreasonable and wrongly interpreted order; so, he asked the Supreme Court to annul it.

On Saturday, August 29, 2009, Vice-president Jha has asked Prime Minister Madhav Nepal to recommend the President for invoking the Article 151 of the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 to pardon him for not taking an oath in Nepali. However, the Article 151 gives the President power to release prisoners on parole, commute severe punishment to lesser punishment and so on but not for annulling the ruling of the Supreme Court of Nepal.

Attorney General Dr Bharat Bahadur Karki has said that the President could not use the Article 151 of the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 to block the apex court order on writ jurisdiction; this Article is for granting pardon, commuting sentences passed by any court or judicial authority.

The Council of Ministers in a meeting has set the 4:00 PM on August 30, 2009 for Vice-president Permananda Jha to take an oath of office in Nepali at the office of the President but the ministers belonging to the Madheshi political parties have boycotted this meeting.

On August 30, 2009, President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav, Prime Minister Madhav Nepal and Speaker Subash Nemwang have waited for the Vice-president at the office of the President for more than one hour for taking an oath of office but he did not show up for the ceremony. Then, the Prime Minister made a call to the Vice-president urging him to come to the ceremony.

At the same time, Vice-president Permananda Jha has held a press conference at his office to explain to the public why he has neither taken an oath of office in Nepali nor has resigned from the position rather has opted to get his duties suspended by the order of the Supreme Court of Nepal.

Reading a written statement in Nepali, Vice-president Jha has said that he would consider retaking an oath of office only after the legislature passes the Amendment Bill the government has submitted to it for making the provision for taking an oath in all the languages spoken in Nepal; nullifying his oath in Hindi by the Supreme Court goes against the constitution, democratic norms and people’s fundamental rights to use their mother tongues; the President has accepted his oath in Hindi for the last one year; the Supreme Court has not urged President to administer an oath of office to him. However, he did not take questions from the reporters.

Chairman of Tarai Madhesh Democratic Party Mahant Thakur along with Madheshi People’s Rights Forum-Democratic President and Deputy Prime Minister Bijaya Gacchedar and Nepal Sadbhavana Party Chairman Rajendra Mahato has attempted to persuade Vice-president Jha to take an oath in Nepali and his mother tongue. After meeting with the Vice-president, speaking to the reporters, Chairman Mahant Thakur has said that they have requested Vice-president Jha for retaking the oath in Nepali and his mother tongue; he assured them of considering their request.

On August 29, 2009, burning tires on roads and shutting down the regular businesses in the districts, students and youths affiliated to Madheshi political parties have staged rallies in Bara and Siraha districts protesting the ruling of the Supreme Court against the Vice-president taking oath in Hindi and the government attempting to enforce it.

On August 31, 2009, Chairman of Madheshi People's Rights Forum (MPRF) Upendra Yadav has congratulated Vice President Permananda Jha on not taking an oath in Nepali saying it is an encouraging step for the movement of linguistic freedom. Chairman Yadav also has said that the Supreme Court’s ruling on annulling the oath of Vice-president in Hindi is undemocratic. He has also alleged that the Supreme Court of Nepal has endorsed the government’s conspiracy to deny the rights of Madheshis to their languages; so, Madheshi people will not accept it. Chairman Yadav also has alleged that some leaders of Madheshi political parties have deviated from their stand on the language issue requesting Vice-president Jha to retake an oath of office in Nepali.

The KP Oli-Madhav Nepal Alliance and the Girija group of the Nepali Congress and the Hindi group of the Madheshi political parties would sell Nepal to India if Nepalis do not stop them from doing so in time. Prime Minister Madhav Nepal has been keeping quiet even though Indians have encroached on the Nepalese territory and the Indian Border Security Force has been harassing Nepalis whereas Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala has even denied that the Indians have encroached on the Nepalese territory and harassed Nepalis; recently Minister for Culture Mirendra Rijal has recommended the Prime Minister to appoint two Indian priests at the temple to Pashupati in Kathmandu while the Hindi group of the Madheshi political parties has been forcibly attempting to impose Hindi on Nepalis. So, all nationalist Nepalis need to unite to fight against these pro-Indian groups.

So, legislators need to impeach the Vice-president for not complying with the order of the Supreme Court of Nepal, and remove such an anti-nationalistic person from the honorable position of Vice-president, and the President, too for violating the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 directly writing a letter to the army chief and saving his job going against the democratic norms and values. Nepalis have not elected them to go against the people’s aspiration for democracy, rule of law and justice. These guys have been disregarding the Supreme Court of Nepal and the Constitution of Nepal to serve the interest of their supporters. They have no rights to stay on in such honorable positions as the President and the Vice-president. Nepalis need to force them out of offices if the legislators do not do so. This will be the beginning of the fighting against the pro-Indian groups for preserving the sovereignty of Nepal.

September 1, 2009.