The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday issued a show cause notice to the government, asking it to clarify why it amended the Black Marketing and Some Other Social Offences and Punishment Act 2032.

A five-member bench led by Chief Justice Gopal Prasad Parajuli issued the order in response to a writ filed by Advocate Jagannath Mishra. The petitioner has claimed the government amended Act has a lenient provision against those involved in the black-marketeering.

Earlier, there was a provision of 10-year jail term for those involved in black-marketeering, but the amendment Act has decreased the punishment to one year.

According to constitutional provisions, cases of one-year term will be dealt with by chief district officers. Mishra in his petition has claimed that referring such cases to CDOs could mean judgments could be passed under political influence.

The Act was amended by CPN-UML-led Chairman KP Oli-led government in 2015. Advocate Mishra has said the Act was amended to protect people involved in black-marketeering.