Kathmandu – The ruling party has backed off from amending Nepal Police regulations to remove the 30-year service limit for officers, citing delays in obtaining consent from the Public Service Commission and concerns over potential court challenges.

Inspector General of Police (IGP) Deepak Thapa is set to retire in a week. Earlier, the government had prepared to remove the 30-year service provision under Rule 127 (g) of the Police Regulations 2071. However, according to a senior Home Ministry official, the process was not advanced as top leaders realized it might not succeed. Preparations for the amendment had started two weeks ago, but a lack of clarity from the government caused delays.

“The Police Regulations can only be amended with the opinion of the Ministry of Law and mandatory consent from the Public Service Commission. With no amendment, IGP Thapa and Additional IGPs Tek Prasad Tamang and Sudip Giri, among others, will retire on 18 Bhadra due to service limits.

In March 2014, the Supreme Court issued a directive against arbitrarily amending police service tenure through regulations, instructing that service and retirement matters be settled through legislation rather than regulations. Although the government presented the Nepal Police Bill in Parliament seven months ago, it has not yet been finalized. When the government attempted to amend regulations while the bill was still under discussion in the Parliamentary State Affairs and Good Governance Committee, it raised concerns.

The Police Bill, tabled on 15 Magh 2081, proposes removing the 30-year service limit, allowing retirement based solely on position tenure or age limit. Currently, the regulations stipulate a four-year term, 30-year service limit, or age 58 for the IGP, with retirement based on whichever comes first. Additional IGPs and DIGs have a 56-year age limit and five-year term, while SSPs and SPs have a 55-year age limit and six- and ten-year terms respectively. Critics argue that including service and term provisions in the regulations has made transfers, promotions, retirements, and career development in the police force non-transparent.