In a significant step toward enhancing judicial ties, the Supreme Courts of India and Nepal on Monday (April 7, 2025) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote judicial cooperation.

Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna described the occasion as “the lighting of a new torch” in the relationship between the two neighbouring countries’ judiciaries.

Speaking in the presence of Chief Justice of Nepal Prakash Man Singh Raut, CJI Khanna emphasised the importance of jurisprudential exchanges in ensuring that constitutional democracies remain dynamic and receptive to learning and evolution. “Jurisprudential exchanges ensure that our constitutional democracies are not insular, but open to learning, adaptation, and evolution,” he said.

CJI Khanna also highlighted the Indian Supreme Court’s openness to ideas from beyond its borders, recalling how a decision by the Supreme Court of Nepal played an influential role in India’s decriminalisation of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code.

“The Indian court noted the Nepalese judgment with approval, particularly drawing inspiration from how it linked the rights of LGBTQ persons to their right to privacy,” Chief Justice Khanna said.

Likewise, the CJI said Nepal has incorporated Indian constitutional doctrines. “These include the celebrated doctrine of the Basic Structure of the Constitution. I am happy to note how some of the Indian constitutional principles have found a home in Nepal’s jurisprudence!” the CJI noted.

The newly signed MoU envisions structured collaboration through judicial exchanges, joint research initiatives, training programmes, seminars, and official visits. It is aimed at addressing shared challenges such as delays in justice delivery, limited access to justice, the need for greater digitisation, and the protection of constitutional rights in an increasingly complex world.

The signing ceremony was attended by several prominent legal figures, including Union Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, Attorney General for India R. Venkataramani, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, Bar Council of India Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra, and presidents of the Supreme Court Bar Association and the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association, Kapil Sibal and Vipin Nair, respectively.