Parmanand Jha

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Parmanand Jha परमानन्द झा
1st Vice President of Nepal
Incumbent
Assumed office  July 23, 2008
President	Ram Baran Yadav
Preceded by	Office created
Political party	Madhesi Janadhikar Forum

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President of Nepal (List) Ram Baran Yadav
Vice President of Nepal (List) Parmanand Jha
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Council of Ministers (List)
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Election Commission of Nepal Constituent Assembly: 2008 Presidential: 2008
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Parmanand Jha (Nepali: परमानन्द झा) is the Vice President of Nepal and a former Supreme Court judge. He hails from Mauwaha VDC-1, Saptari District.^[1] Jha resigned as a judge in December 2007. He had not been proposed by the Judicial Council as a permanent judge at the apex court, following allegations of involvement in drug smuggling. Jha joined political life, becoming a member of the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum.^[2] On July 19, 2008, Jha was elected vice-president of Nepal by the Constituent Assembly.^[3] Jha had been nominated by the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum.^[4] After the election, Jha vowed that he would work in an independent manner, free from party interests.^[2]

Contents 1 Term of Office 2 Oath in Hindi and Aftermath 2.1 Writ Petition against Jha 2.2 Jha's Reaction to Agitation 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Term of Office

He took his tenure on July 23^[5] after Chief Justice Kedar Prasad Giri administered the oath of office and secrecy to the Ram Baran Yadav first president at the presidential palace, Shital Niwas, Rastrapati Bhawan, 3:45 pm. Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, among others, was also present. Yadav also administered the oath to vice president Parmananda Jha.^[6][7].

[edit] Oath in Hindi and Aftermath

He came into controversy after he took the oath of office and secrecy in Hindi^[8], which is the mother tongue of less than 1% of the Nepalese population^[9] and is the official language of India^[10]. This led to a widespread agitation throughout the country^[11][12][8]. The media gave a good coverage to this.^[13][14][15] Many news sites and blogs were suddenly filled with comments on this issue. The views expressed in the sites were mixed. While many people expressed that the swearing in was unconstitutional ^[11], leaders of Jha's party came up with a view that this act was permissible^[16] because Hindi language is spoken and widely understood by people in Nepal^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] Writ Petition against Jha

A writ petition was filed by Bal Krishna Neupane at the apex court claiming that the oath was unconstitutional as it was taken in a language not recognised by the interim constitution^[17][8]. In response to this, the Supreme Court on 28 July 2008 (Monday) asked the government and the Vice President Parmananda Jha to furnish written explanation regarding the oath taken in Hindi^[18][19]

[edit] Jha's Reaction to Agitation

Even after a deadline of 7 days^[20], V. P. Jha ignored the court's order for his written clarification ^[21] but he had expressed regret^[22] via a statement clarifying that his taking oath in Hindi language was not to pinch at sentiments of any Nepali citizen and also stated that he has signed the oath paper written in Nepali^[23][24].

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Interview Video: Nationality is not in crisis, says VP Jha
• A blog post in a popular Nepal based blog.
• A blog entitled "We Love Parmanand Jha"
• Video of oath taking, second half of the video has Jha's oath
• Protests