ELECTION CODE OF CONDUCT IN FORCE Kathmandu, 8 June: Attention was drawn with the 12-point election code of conduct was prepared and handed over to government Thursday, Ganesh Rai writes in Kantipur. Election Commission said a code of conduct is already in force with the announcement of constituent assembly elections. nnnn . GOLD PRICE SLIPS MARGINALLY Kathmandu, 8 June: Gold price slipped marginally Thursday. Gold was traded Thursday for Rs. 56,650 per tola; the yellow metal was traded for Rs.56,900 per tola on Wednesday. Price increased marginally Thursday with the gain of the Indian currency against the US dollar.. nnnn. EDITORS IN KANTIPUR PUBLICATIONS PROMOTED Kathmandu, 8 June; Akalish Updhaya has been promoted Editor-in-Chief of The Kathmandu Post with immediate effect; Upadhaya was editor. Sudheer Sharma has also been promoted editor-in-chief of Kantipur by board of directors of Kantipur Publications. Nnnn NRB TO ISSUE TS.1 FOREIGN EMPLOYMENT BOND Kathmandu, 8 June: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) is planning to issue foreign employment bonds (FEBs) worth Rs 1 billion by the third week of June. The bond issue, in its third year, has been targeted at Nepali migrant workers across the globe, Ashok Thapawrites in The Kathmandu Post.. The central bank has reduced the volume of the bond issue considering the poor subscription during the last two editions. Nepali migrant workers bought bonds worth Rs 3.38 million against the target of Rs 5 billion in the last fiscal year 2010-11. Subscriptions amounted to a paltry Rs 4 million against the target of Rs 1 billion in 2009-10. “We have decreased the volume of the bond issue due to disappointing subscriptions in the last two years,” said a senior NRB official. However, he believed that there were greater chances of sales this year as Nepali migrant workers from all over the world including India have been allowed to buy the bonds. India hosts the largest number of Nepali migrant workers although the income earned by them is relatively low compared to those who go to the Gulf, Malaysia and other destinations. Last year, only Nepali migrant workers based in South Korea, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar could buy the bonds. Furthermore, the central bank has permitted migrant workers to pay for the bonds in Nepali currency this year unlike in the past when they had to pay in foreign currency. “They only need to produce evidence that foreign currency equivalent to the amount of the purchase has been transferred to Nepal,” said the NRB official. “They can show the receipt given by their money transfer agency to prove that the funds have been transferred,” he said. The government is yet to fix the interest rate the bonds will earn this year. However, the central bank official said that they had proposed fixing the interest rate at 10 percent. Last year, the interest rate was fixed at 10.5 percent. “As interest rates are dropping in the banking sector, we also proposed reducing the rate marginally for the bonds this year,” said the NRB official involved in issuance of the bonds. “It is still higher than the citizen savings bonds which pay an interest of 9.5 percent per annum.” According to the working procedure made public by the central bank recently, Nepalis working abroad and those who have returned to the country and have been here for less than three months can subscribe to the bond issue. The bonds will be sold in multiples of Rs 5,000. Similarly, the bonds can be used as collateral to take loans from banks and financial institutions. Buyers will start earning interest from the date they make payment into NRB’s account. According to the working procedure, the bonds can be traded on the secondary market. Nnnn LAWYERS DIFFER ON LEGALITY OF CA REVIVAL Kathmandu, 8 June: Political parties mulling over reinstatement of the disbanded Constituent Assembly (CA) as a possible way out of the current political impasse, the judicial fraternity remains divided over such an idea, Pranab Kharel writes in The Kathmandu Post. While some said that the CA resurrection would be legal as the Interim Constitution does not imagine a situation where a vacuum is created in the absence of the assembly or the Legislature-Pareliament, others argued that the CA's term has expired as per the verdict of the Supreme Court and that it cannot be brought back to life. Those pushing for the CA's revival also argued that it is more a political issue than a constitutional one and, therefore, the parties should move ahead without any hesitation. The Supreme Court, they said, will not "intervene" if the parties try to fix the problem amicably and in good faith. Some, however, argued that there is a clear constitutional ground for the CA revival and even if it is interpreted as a "constitutional issue" and is likely to come under judicial review, the parties need not fear. Former Justice of the Supreme Court Balram KC said the move to revive the CA will be legal as the Interim Constitution does not imagine a vacuum. KC argued that the doctrine of necessity can be evoked to justify the revival. Citing provisions in the constitutions of South Africa and Namibia, KC said the parliament (CA also functioned as the parliament) can continue to function even if it is dissolved, until a successful election. On fresh elections, KC said they can be held even after the CA is revived. However, constitutional lawyer Bipin Adhikari dismissed the claim that the CA can be revived as per the Interim Constitution. “Such arguments don't hold ground given that the CA expired as per the apex court verdict”. He said that the chapter concerning the CA in the Interim Constitution has come to an end after the term of the CA expired. He clarified that any move to revive the CA would be unconstitutional and seriously undermine the independence of the judiciary, as the apex court had already termed the last extension of CA as "final". Adhikari also said that even the President does not have any right to amend the constitution. Another constitutional lawyer Purnaman Shakya also said the CA cannot be revived constitutionally. “If the parties want to find a solution, it has to happen outside the constitutional framework,” he said. Shakya added that the CA can be given a fresh lease of life on the basis of political consensus. He, however, also added that in such a situation, it would mean that the political forces have not respected the apex court verdict. nnnn