Kathmandu: The Supreme Court (SC) has mandated a written response within seven days from individuals named during the statement recording and hearing concerning the contempt of court case involving sidhakura.com.

The proceedings, overseen by a division bench comprising Justices Hari Prasad Phuyal and Mahesh Sharma Poudyal, elicited orders for written replies from Annapurna Post Chairperson Rameshwor Thapa, Kantipur Media Group's Chairperson Kailash Sirohiya, senior advocate Hari Prasad Uprety, advocate Kishore Kumar Bista, Annapurna Post journalist Surendra Kafle, and former Superintendent of Police (SP) Sanjay Thapa.

Present in court were executives from the Kathmandu-based news portal, including executive editor Navin Dhungana and publishers Yuwaraj Kandel and Raj Kumar Timilsina.

The case stems from the publication of a news story, accompanied by an audio clip, purportedly revealing a 'sting operation' by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, implicating Supreme Court justices in influencing a case.

Following the publication, Deputy Registrar Govinda Ghimire submitted a contempt of court report against the news portal. In response, a division bench of Justices Nahakul Subedi and Tek Prasad Dhungana instructed the online media outlet to remove the defamatory story within 24 hours.

Furthermore, the court directed executive editor Navin Dhungana and publishers Yuwaraj Kandel and Raj Kumar Timalsina, who provided the recorded content, to appear before the court. Additionally, Raj Kumar Timalsina was tasked with submitting the original device used to record the contentious content and the email correspondence with Surendra Kafle within seven days.

The case is slated for further hearing on May 17, underscoring the ongoing legal scrutiny surrounding the matter.