KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court on Wednesday deferred its hearing on a high-profile lawsuit challenging the government’s decision to scrap civil servants’ trade unions, placing the case on a continuous hearing status for June 10 after arguments remained inconclusive.

A five-member constitutional bench—comprising Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Sharma and Justices Nahakul Subedi, Binod Sharma, Abdul Aziz Musalman, and Mahesh Sharma Paudel—heard arguments from both sides before Supreme Court Spokesperson Arjun Prasad Koirala confirmed that the case, which seeks an interim order against the executive move, would resume on June 10.

The legal battle stems from a controversial ordinance issued by the Balendra Shah-led government aimed at entirely dismantling politically affiliated trade unions within the civil service.

Challenging the decision, Bhawani Dahal, President of the Civil Servants’ Organization, filed a writ petition at the apex court on May 8, arguing that the ordinance directly violates constitutionally guaranteed rights to form trade unions, participate in them, and engage in collective bargaining.

The case has already seen swift judicial intervention; on May 11, a constitutional bench led by then-Acting Chief Justice Sapana Pradhan Malla and Justices Kumar Regmi, Hari Prasad Phuyal, Binod Sharma, and Sharanga Subedi issued a short-term interim order that successfully froze the implementation of the ordinance until May 20.