| CONSTITUTION |
| PREAMBLE
WHEREAS, We are convinced that the source of sovereign
authority of the independent and sovereign Nepal
is inherent in the people, and, therefore, We have,
from time to time, made known our desire to conduct
the government of the country in consonance with
the popular will;
AND WHEREAS, in keeping with the desire of the Nepalese
people expressed through the recent people's movement
to bring about constitutional changes, we are further
inspired by the objective of securing to the Nepalese
people social, political and economic justice long
into the future;
AND WHEREAS, it is expedient to promulgate and enforce
this Constitution, made with the widest possible
participation of the Nepalese people, to guarantee
basic human rights to every citizen of Nepal; and
also to consolidate Adult Franchise, the Parliamentary
System of Government, Constitutional Monarchy and
the System of Multi Party Democracy by promoting
amongst the people of Nepal the spirit of fraternity
and the bond of unity on the basis of liberty and
equality; and also to establish an independent and
competent system of justice with a view to transforming
the concept of the Rule of Law into a living reality:
NOW, THEREFORE, keeping in view the desire of the
people that the State authority and sovereign powers
shall, after the commencement of this Constitution,
be exercised in accordance with the provisions of
this Constitution, I, KING BIRENDRA BIR BIKRAM SHAH
DEVA, by virtue of the State authority as exercised
by Us, do hereby promulgate and enforce this CONSTITUTION
OF Nepal on the recommendation and
advice, and with the consent of the Council of Ministers. |
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| PART
1 |
: PRELIMINARY
|
| PART
2 |
: CITIZENSHIP |
| PART
3 |
: FUNDAMENTAL
RIGHTS |
| PART
4 |
: DIRECTIVE
PRINCIPLES AND POLICIES OF THE STATE |
| PART
5 |
: HIS
MAJESTY |
| PART
6 |
: RAJ
PARISHAD |
| PART
7 |
:
EXECUTIVE |
| PART
8 |
: LEGISLATURE |
| PART
9 |
: LEGISLATIVE
PROCEDURE |
| PART
10 |
: FINANCIAL
PROCEDURE |
| PART
11 |
:
JUDICIARY |
| PART
12 |
: COMMISSION
FOR THE INVESTIGATION OF ABUSE OF AUTHORITY |
| PART
13 |
: AUDITOR-
GENERAL |
| PART
14 |
: PUBLIC
SERVICE COMMISSION |
| PART
15 |
: ELECTION
COMMISSION |
| PART
16 |
: ATTORNEY-
GENERAL |
| PART
17 |
: POLITICAL
ORGANISATIONS |
| PART
18 |
: EMERGENCY
POWER |
| PART
19 |
: AMENDMENT
OF THE CONSTITUTION |
| PART
20 |
: MISCELLANEOUS |
| PART
21 |
: TRANSITIONAL
PROVISIONS |
| PART
22 |
: DEFINITIONS
AND INTERPRETATION |
| PART
23 |
: SHORT
TITLE AND COMMENCEMENT |
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|
SCHEDULE
1 (Relating to Article 5)
NATIONAL FLAG:
(A) Method of Making the Shape inside the Border |
| 1. |
On the
lower portion of a crimson cloth draw a line AB of
the required length from left to right. |
| 2. |
From A
draw a line AC perpendicular to AB making AC equal
to AB plus one third AB. From AC mark off D making
line AD equal to line AB. Join BD. |
| 3. |
From BD
mark off E making BE equal to AB. |
| 4. |
Touching
E draw a line FG, starting from the point F on line
AC, parallel to AB to the right hand-side. Mark off
FG equal to AB. |
| 5. |
Join CG.
|
| |
| (B) Method
of Making the Moon |
| 6. |
From
AB mark off AH making AH equal to one-fourth of line
AB and starting from H draw a line HI parallel to
line AC touching line CG at point I. |
| 7. |
Bisect
CF at J and draw a line JK parallel to AB touching
CG at point K. |
| 8. |
Let L
be the point where lines JK and HI cut one another.
|
| 9. |
Join
JG. |
| 10. |
Let M
be the point where line JG and HI cut one another.
|
| 11. |
With centre
M and with a distance shortest from M to BD mark off
N on the lower portion of line HI. |
| 12. |
Touching
M and starting from O, a point on AC, draw a line
from left to right parallel to AB. |
| 13. |
With centre
L and radius LN draw a semi-circle on the lower portion
and let P and Q be the points where it touches the
line OM respectively. |
| 14. |
With centre
M and radius MQ draw a semi-circle on the lower portion
touching P and Q. |
| 15. |
With centre
N and radius NM draw an arc touching PNQ [sic] at
R and S. Join RS. Let T be the point where RS and
HI cut one another. |
| 16. |
With Centre
T and radius TS draw a semi-circle on the upper portion
of PNQ touching it at two points. |
| 17. |
With centre
T and radius TM draw an arc on the upper portion of
PNQ touching at two points. |
| 18. |
Eight
equal and similar triangles of the moon are to be
made in the space lying inside the semi-circle of
No. |
| 19. |
and outside
the arc of No. (17) of this Schedule. |
| |
|
| (C) Method
of making the Sun 22. |
| 20. |
Bisect
line AF at U and draw a line UV parallel to line AB
touching line BE at V. |
| 21. |
With centre
W, the point where HI and UV cut one another and radius
MN draw a circle. |
| 23. |
With centre
W and radius LN draw a circle |
| 24. |
Twelve
equal and similar triangles of the sun are to be made
in the space enclosed by the circles of No. (20) and
of No. (21) with the two apexes of two triangles touching
line HI. |
| 25. |
|
| (D) Method
of Making the Border |
| 26. |
The width
of the border will be equal to the width TN. This
will be of deep blue colour and will be provided on
all the sides of the flag. However, on the five angles
of the flag the external angles will be equal to the
internal angles. |
| 27. |
The above
mentioned border will be provided if the flag is to
be used with a rope. On the other hand, if it is to
be hoisted on a pole, the hole on the border on the
side AC can be extended according to requirements.
|
| |
|
| Explanation:
|
| |
The lines
HI, RS, FE, ED, JG, OQ, JK and UV are imaginary. Similarly,
the external and internal circles of the sun and the
other arcs except the crescent moon are also imaginary.
These are not shown on the flag. |
| |
|
SCHEDULE
2 (Relating to Clause (1) of Article 7)
NATIONAL ANTHEM:
SHRIMAN GAMBHIRA NEPALI PRACHANDA PRATAPI BHUPATI
SHREE PANCH SARKAR MAHARAJADHIRAJAKO SADA RAHOS UNNATI
RAKHUN CHIRAYU EESHALE. PRAJA FAILIYOS PUKARAUN JAYA
PREMALE HAMI NEPALI SARALE.
BAIRI SARA HARAUN SHANT HOUN SABAI BIGHNA VYATHA.
GAUN SARA DUNIYALE SAHARSHA NATHKO SUKIRTI-KATHA RAKHAUN
SHASANA, BHARI BEERTALE, NEPAL MATHI SANDHAI NATHKO
SHRI HOS THULO HAMI NEPALIKO |
| |
|
SCHEDULE
3 (Relating to clause (3) of Article 7)
THE COAT-OF-ARMS OF NEPAL |
| |
| 1.
The following objectives are mentioned in the Preamble
of the Constitution: |
| |
 |
Guarantee
of Basic Human Rights to every citizen of
Nepal, |
|
Consolidation
of Adult Franchise, the Parliamentary System
of Government, Constitutional Monarchy and
the System of Multiparty Democracy, |
|
Establishment
of an Independent and Competent System of
Justice. |
|
| |
| 2.
Constitution is the Fundamental Law of Nepal.
3. The Sovereignty of Nepal is vested in
the Nepalese people.
4. Nepal is a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual,
democratic, independent, indivisible, sovereign,
Hindu and Constitutional Monarchical Kingdom.
5. The Nepali language in the Devnagari script
is the language of the nation of Nepal and also
an official language. All other languages spoken
as the mother tongue are the national languages
of Nepal.
6. There is the provision of Fundamental
Rights in the Part 3 of the Constitution which are
as follows: |
| |
|
Right
to Equality: All
citizen shall be equal before the law. No
discrimination shall be made against any
citizen on grounds of religion, race, sex,
caste, tribe or ideological conviction or
any of these. |
|
Right
to Freedom: No
person shall be deprived of his personal
liberty save in accordance with law and
no law shall be made which provides for
capital punishment. All citizen shall have
the freedom of opinion and expression, freedom
to assemble peacefully and without arms,
freedom to form unions and associations,
freedom to move through-out the Kingdom
and reside in any part thereof and freedom
to practice any profession or to carry on
any occupation, industry or trade. |
| |
Press
and Publication Right: No
news item, article or other reading material
shall be censored. No press shall be closed
or seized for printing and the registration
of a news paper or periodical shall not
be cancelled merely for publishing any news
item, article or other reading material. |
|
Right
Regarding Criminal Justice: No
person shall be punished for an act which
was not punishable by law when the act was
committed. No person shall be prosecuted
or punished for the same offence in a court
of law more than once. No person accused
of any offence shall be compelled to be
a witness against himself. No person shall
be subjected to a punishment greater than
that prescribed by the law in force at the
time of the commission of the offence. No
person who is detained during investigation
or for trial or for any other reason shall
be subjected to physical or mental torture,
nor shall be given any cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment. No person who is arrested
shall be detained in custody without being
informed. Every person who is arrested and
detained in custody shall be produced before
a judicial authority within a period of
24 hours after such arrest. |
|
Right
against Preventive Detention:
No person shall be held under preventive
detention unless there is sufficient ground
and if his detention was contrary to law
or in bad faith he shall have the right
to be compensated. |
|
Right
to Information: Every
citizen shall have the right to demand and
receive information on any matter of public
importance. |
|
Right
to Property: All citizen shall, subject
to the existing laws, have the right to
acquire, own, sell and otherwise dispose
of property. |
|
Cultural
and Educational Right: Each
community shall have the right to preserve
and promote its language, script and culture
and to operate schools up to the primary
level in its own mother tongue. |
|
Right
to Religion: Every
person shall have the freedom to profess
and practise his own religion and no person
shall be entitled to convert another person
from one religion to another. |
|
Right
against Exploitation: Traffic in human
beings, slavery, serfdom or forced labour
in any form is strictly prohibited. |
|
Right
against Exile: No citizen shall be exiled. |
|
Right
to Privacy: Except
as provided by law, the privacy of the person,
house, property, document, correspondence
or information of anyone is inviolable. |
|
Right
to Constitutional Remedy:
The right to proceed for the enforcement
of the rights mentioned above is guaranteed
|
|
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| 7.
There are provisions of Directive Principles and
Policies of the State on political, economic, social,
development and foreign affairs.
8. His Majesty is the symbol of Nepalese
nationality and the unity of the Nepalese people.
9. The executive power of Nepal shall, pursuant to this Constitution and other
laws, be vested in His Majesty and the Council of
Ministers and the responsibility of issuing general
directives, controlling and regulating the administration
of Nepal shall, subject to this Constitution
and other laws, lie in the Council of Ministers.
Except as otherwise expressly provided as to be
exercised exclusively by His Majesty or at His discretion
or on the recommendation of any institution or official,
the powers of His Majesty under this Constitution
shall be exercised upon the recommendation and advice,
and with the consent of the Council of Ministers.
10. His Majesty shall appoint the leader
of the party, which commands a majority in the House
of Representatives, as the Prime Minister and shall
appoint other Ministers from amongst the members
of Parliament upon the recommendation of the Prime
Minster. The Prime Minister and other Ministers
shall be collectively responsible to the House of
Representatives and the Ministers shall be individually
responsible for the work of their respective Ministries
to the Prime Minister and the House of Representatives.
If no one party has a clear majority in the House
of Representatives, His Majesty shall appoint as
Prime Minister a member who is able to command a
majority with the support of two or more parties
represented in the House of Representatives. If
no member is able to command a majority in the House
of Representatives as mentioned above, His Majesty
shall appoint as Prime Minister the leader of the
Parliamentary party that holds the largest number
of seats in the House of Representatives. A Prime
Minister appointed in both the situations, as mentioned
above, shall be required to obtain a vote of confidence
from the House of Representatives within 30 days.
But if he fails to obtain a vote of confidence from
the House of Representatives, His Majesty shall
dissolve the House of Representatives and issue
an order for holding election within 6 months.
11. There shall be a Legislature, to be called
Parliament, which shall consist of His Majesty and
two Houses, namely the House of Representatives
and the National Assembly. The House of Representatives
shall consist of 205 members elected by the citizen
who has attained the age of 18 on the basis of Adult
Franchise. The National Assembly shall consist of
60 members- 10 members to be nominated by His Majesty,
35 members, including at least 3 women members,
to be elected by the House of Representatives and
15 members, 3 from each of the Development Regions,
to be elected on the basis of the system of single
transferable vote by an electoral college consisting
of the Chief and the Deputy Chief of the Village
and Town level Local Authorities and the Chief,
Deputy Chief and the Members of the District level
Local Authorities. The term of the House of Representatives
shall, generally, be 5 years and the tenure of office
of the members of the National Assembly shall be
6 years. The National Assembly shall be a permanent
House and one-third of its members shall expire
every two years. The Speaker elected from among
its members of the House of Representatives and
the Chairman elected from among its members of National
Assembly shall preside over and chair the Houses
respectively.
12. No tax shall be levied and collected
except in accordance with law.
13. Courts in Nepal shall consist
of three tiers- Supreme Court, Appellate Court and
District Court. The Supreme Court shall be the highest
court in the judicial hierarchy and a Court of Record.
The Supreme Court shall, in addition to the Chief
Justice of Nepal, consist of up to a maximum of
14 other Judges. His Majesty shall appoint the Chief
Justice on the recommendation of the Constitutional
Council and other Judges of the Supreme Court as
well as of the Appellate and Discrict Courts on
the recommendation of the Judicial Council.
14. There are the provisions, in the Constitution,
of the Raj Parishad and its Standing Committee,
a Public Service Commission, an Auditor General,
an Election Commission, an Attorney General, a Commission
for the Investigation of Albuse of Authority etc.
The Members of the Public Service Commission, the
Election Commission and the Commission for the Investigation
of Abuse of Authority and the Auditor General shall
be appointed by His Majesty on the recommendation
of the Constitutional Council and the Attorney General
on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.
15. Any political organization or party shall
be required to register its name with the office
of the Election Commission for the purpose of election.
To secure recognition from the Election Commission
those parties shall be required to fulfill the conditions
of, in addition of other conditions, at least 5%
of the total number of candidates contesting an
election must be women candidates and must have
secured a minimum of 3% of the total vote cast in
the election to the House of Representatives. Any
law, arrangement or decision which restricts to
form and operate political organizations or parties
shall be inconsistent with this Constitution and
shall be void.
16. If a grave emergency arises in regard
to the sovereignty or integrity of Nepal or the security of any part thereof, whether
by war, external aggression, armed rebellion or
extreme economic disarray, His Majesty may, by Proclamation,
declare or order a State of Emergency in respect
of the whole of Nepal or of any specified
part thereof. Every Proclamation or Order issued
shall be laid before a meeting of the House of Representatives
for approval within 3 months from the date of issuance.
17. His Majesty may, at the time of making
a Proclamation or Order of a State of Emergency,
suspend the Fundamental Rights excluding the Right
to the Remedy of Habeas Corpus. .
18. A Bill to amend or repeal any article
of this Constitution, without prejudicing the spirit
of the Preamble of this Constitution, may be introduced
in either House of Parliament. If each House, with
two-thirds of its total membership attending, passes
the Bill by a majority of at least two-thirds of
the members present, the Bill shall be submitted
to His Majesty for assent.
19. His Majesty shall operate and use the
Royal Nepal Army on the recommendation of the National
Defence Council consisting of the Prime Minister,
the Defence Minister and the Commander-in-Chief.
His Majesty is the Supreme Commander of the Royal
Nepal Army and shall appoint the Commander-in-Chief
on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.
20. The ratification of, accession to, acceptance
of or approval of treaties or agreements to which
Nepal or His Majesty's Government
is to become a party shall be as determined by the
law. The laws to be made shall, inter alia, require
that the ratification of, accession to, acceptance
of or approval of treaties or agreements on the
following subjects be done by a majority of two-thirds
of the members present at a joint sitting of both
Houses of Parliament: |
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