Bar association asks for CJ?s resignation KOL Report KATHMANDU, April 25 - The Nepal Bar Association asked for Chief Justice Hari Prasad Sharma?s resignation Sunday for his ?political speech? at an international conference in Australia. Sharma, speaking the 11th Conference of the Chief Justices of Asia Pacific in Queensland in March, had said that the King?s Feb. 1 move had been brought about by failure on the part of the successive governments to counter terrorism in Nepal. He said the King wanted to restore peace and conserve the multiparty democracy, as mentioned in the royal proclamation. The Nepal Bar Association had been discussing the topic for the past couple of weeks, reported Kantipur daily. The bar association, which represents lawyers from all over the country, yesterday said it opposed the chief justice?s speech. The association said that the Sharma had failed to carry out his duties as chief justice that required him to head an independent judiciary and to protect the Constitution. It said that he should thus resign. Shrama has managed to draw the ire of lawyers, legal experts and even justices of the Supreme Court itself through his remarks. He has been accused of undermining the autonomy of the judiciary and violating the code of conduct of judges, which says that they should not express their opinion or comment on political issues that court might need to deliberate on. Chief Justice Sharma has maintained that he will not be unnerved by the criticism of his speech. The bar association also said that his ?support? of the Royal Commission for Corruption Control?s investigations into alleged corruption on the part of the judges has hurt the ascendancy of the Constitution. (yv)