Crisis looms as Nepal vice president refuses to retake oath

Aug 30, 2009, 9:01 GMT

   Kathmandu - Vice President Parmananda Jha on Sunday refused requests by the government to retake his oath of office in Nepali language as ordered by the country's Supreme Court, raising fears of a constitutional crisis.

   Jha has been at the centre of escalating controversy for more than a month since the high court ruled that his original oath taken in Hindi language a year ago was unconstitutional.

   Last week, the Supreme Court reissued the order for Jha to take his oath within a week, or lose his position. The court deadline ends on midnight Sunday.

   Jha told a press conference in Kathmandu Sunday afternoon that the court order was biased and he vowed to ignore it.

   'I will only retake the oath of office after the government and the parliament adopts a constitutional amendment that respects all the languages spoken in Nepal,' Jha said. 'My only aspiration is that every Nepali can use his language and culture with respect.'

   Jha also criticized the Supreme Court decision.

   'Responsible people in the judiciary have wrongly interpreted the interim constitution of the country and have done great injustice,' he said.

   Jha, an ethnic Madhesi from southern Nepal, said Hindi is widely used by people across that region and is a common language between different communities.

   Groups close to ethnic Madhesi parties have called strikes in several places in southern Nepal. There have also been sporadic clashes with police.

   Earlier Sunday, the government asked the vice president to retake his oath.

   'The cabinet meeting decided to ask the vice president to retake his oath in Nepali to respect the court order,' Minister for Information and Communication Shankhar Pokharel said.

   Analysts say the language issue could spark off a bigger divide among Nepal's various ethnic groups and destabilize race relations, which have become strained in recent years.