The Supreme Court of Nepal on Wednesday ordered the retrieval of case files from the Special Court and the Patan High Court in connection with a habeas corpus petition concerning detained businessman Deepak Bhatta. A joint bench of Justices Sharanga Subedi and Nityananda Pandey issued the directive, which will place the records of proceedings from both courts before the country's highest court as it considers the petition. The writ was filed by Chaturbhuj Bhatta, the father of Deepak Bhatta, who has approached the Supreme Court over the detention of his son.

What the Supreme Court ordered

According to the order issued on Wednesday, the joint bench of Justices Sharanga Subedi and Nityananda Pandey directed that the files connected to the case be brought from two different courts. Such an order, a standard procedural step in Nepal's judicial practice, is issued when the bench determines that documents held by lower courts or specialized judicial bodies are necessary for a complete hearing of a petition.

The directive covers:

  • The Special Court, which has been asked to send the records of its proceedings connected to the matter.
  • The Patan High Court, which has likewise been directed to forward the files of the relevant case.
  • Upon receipt of both sets of records, the bench will examine them as part of the ongoing habeas corpus proceedings.

Because the order names both the Special Court and the Patan High Court, the bench is seeking a complete record of the proceedings held at each level before reaching a decision on the petition. The retrieval of these files is expected to give the justices direct access to the orders, filings and hearing records maintained by the two courts, rather than requiring the court to rely solely on the submissions made by the parties in the writ proceedings.

The petition filed by the detainee's father

The habeas corpus petition was filed by Chaturbhuj Bhatta, the father of businessman Deepak Bhatta, who is currently in detention. Through the writ, the petitioner has asked the Supreme Court to examine the detention and to secure the appearance of the detainee before the court. Filing the petition in the name of the family member is the standard practice in habeas corpus matters, since the person in custody is not in a position to approach the court directly.

A writ of habeas corpus is one of the principal legal remedies available to the family of a detained person in Nepal. Its purpose is to allow a court to determine whether a person's detention has a legal basis and whether the authorities responsible have followed due process. The Constitution of Nepal guarantees every citizen the right to constitutional remedy, and the courts may issue habeas corpus writs ordering that a detainee be produced before the bench and, where the detention is found to be without legal grounds, that the person be released.

How such petitions are generally handled

  • The bench hearing the writ may direct that the detainee be produced before the court.
  • The authorities responsible for the detention are required to present the legal grounds and relevant documents supporting it.
  • The bench then reviews the records, orders and submissions to determine whether the detention is lawful.
  • Based on that review, the court may either uphold the detention or order appropriate relief for the petitioner.

In the case of Deepak Bhatta, the Supreme Court has now taken the procedural step of calling for the underlying records, which indicates that the bench intends to conduct a detailed examination of the case history before making any determination.

The courts involved in the order

The Special Court is Nepal's specialized judicial body that hears cases involving corruption and other offenses defined under special laws. The Patan High Court, one of the High Courts established under Nepal's federal judicial structure, hears appeals and other matters falling within its jurisdiction. An order requiring files from both institutions means the Supreme Court's review will draw on the paper trail created at those levels of the judiciary.

Calling for case files does not itself amount to a decision on the petition. It is a preparatory measure that allows the bench to study the full record of proceedings before holding substantive hearings on the writ. The order issued on Wednesday by the joint bench of Justices Subedi and Pandey therefore sets the stage for the next phase of the proceedings, in which the court will assess the legality of the detention in light of the retrieved documents.

What happens next

The habeas corpus proceedings will move forward once the requested files reach the Supreme Court from the Special Court and the Patan High Court. The bench of Justices Sharanga Subedi and Nityananda Pandey is expected to take up the matter for further hearing after the records are placed before it. Any order on the petition itself, including directions concerning the detention of Deepak Bhatta, will come only after the bench completes its review of the case files.

The Supreme Court's order was reported by RatoPati and Global Aawaj, both of which covered the directive issued by the joint bench on Wednesday.