Nepal's top court directs govt not to evict squatters without proper rehabilitation plan

Hundreds of landless squatters staged demonstrations protesting the demolition of structures in Kathmandu and other districts. The report notes that more than 3,500 structures have been demolished in Kathmandu and hundreds more in other districts since last month as part of beautification and environmental protection efforts.

A joint bench of Justices Kumar Regmi and Nityananda Pandey directed the government not to evict squatters without a proper rehabilitation plan. The order requires adherence to legal procedures and consideration of irreparable harm to education, health, and housing rights, warning of a humanitarian crisis if safeguards are not followed.

The Supreme Court ordered the government to submit details of the procedures followed in demolishing squatters' settlements in the Kathmandu Valley. The petition named opponents including the Office of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers, Prime Minister Balendra Shah, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Kathmandu Metropolitan City, and others.

Gopal Ranpaheli and Gen Z leaders, including Tanuja Pandey and Majid Ansari, filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court seeking a halt to the government’s eviction of landless squatters from settlements across Kathmandu and other river-bank areas.