The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Normally when the Supreme Court issues a verdict one would assume it is the final verdict for the case and that it will be implemented.
However, in an intriguing case between a farmer from Paro and an influential former Lam the Supreme Court first changed its signed verdict four months later, and then later was unable to fully implement even the changed verdict.
The apartment sale
The former Lam Gyeltshen who held an influential position while in office under the Zhung Dratshang was in need of some money in 2018 and so he offered to sell the ground floor of his five storey building in lower Motithang to Sangay Lhamo of Dawakha, Paro for Nu 7 million on 6th July 2018 when they also made the legal agreement.
The husband of Sangay Lhamo who is Changlo, a farmer, paid Nu 3.7 mn in advance to the Lam with an agreement to also pay the loan and some additional amount.
Changlo said, “I was not keen to buy the unit but the Lam who I knew through family friends needed the money and he kept saying it would be a good investment for the future of my five children. He kept pursuing me several times with numerous calls and a few personal visits and so I finally relented to buy his ground floor.”
However, around 3 months after taking the money the Lam changed his mind about the sale claiming his wife is not okay with the sale.
The court case and verdict
Changlo then filed a court case in the Paro Dzongkhag court on the issue on 8th October 2018 saying he wants the Nu 3.7 mn back with an interest rate permitted by the court for the three months. The Lam accepted he took the 3.7 mn but did not want to pay any interest and requested the court for three months to repay the money.
The case reached its natural culmination when a full bench Supreme Court verdict signed by the Chief Justice Chogyal Dago Rigdzin, Justice Sangay Khandu, Justice Norbu Tshering and Justice Tashi Chhozom came out on 27th April 2022 stating that the Lam Gyeltshen had to pay a total amount of 5.8 mn which included the the 3.7 mn and the permissible interest rate calculated by the court on it since the signing of the Genja on 6th July 2018 to the final day of the verdict in 2022.
The Supreme Court asked Changlo to follow up with the High Court for the verdict implementation and the High Court on 16th May 2022 asked Changlo to go to Paro Court for verdict implementation and recovery of the money.
However, strangely, after a week, a Supreme Court legal clerk called him asking him not to approach the Paro court for verdict implementation stating that the Lam has come to the Supreme Court and they will deal with the implementation here only.
2 Supreme Court verdicts
To Changlo’s shock he was called to the Supreme Court again on 25th August 2022 and was given a new verdict from the Supreme Court signed by the Chief Justice, Justice Sangay Khandu and Justice Norbu Tshering (Justice Tashi Chhozom had left to become an eminent member) where the amount was reduced from Nu 5.8 mn to Nu 4.8 mn.
He was told that Lam Gyeltshen after the verdict had appealed to the Chief Justice and so the amount had been reduced.
The Supreme Court in its second verdict on the same case said that the initial amount of Nu 5.8 mn had been calculated from the day of the agreement until the final verdict of 27 April 2022.
However, the Lam had approached the Chief Justice asking for a review on 22 June 2022 and this was put up in the weekly judicial meeting on 8th July 2022 and the meeting took the decision to apply the interest rate only from the day of the agreement until the high court verdict on 15 March 2021.
The Supreme Court in effect had cancelled its own original verdict given a few months earlier and issued another one with the aim to reduce the amount by Nu 1 mn and the interest time period by around two years.
This revised verdict was handed over to him by Justice Sangay Khandu of the Khading Bench on behalf of the Supreme Court.
Changlo said that in his understanding the final verdict comes from the Supreme Court and so he is not sure how the same court can change its verdict in four months.
Paying only partial amounts
As per the verdict the Lam was supposed to pay him Nu 4.8 mn on 25th September 2022 but the Lam paid only a partial amount of 2 mn on 22nd September 2022. Changlo said the Supreme Court without even asking him allowed the Lam a two-month extension to pay the remaining amount. He said the normal practice is to call both the parties and give an extension by consulting both sides. However, hopeful that he would get the rest of his money he signed an extension document issued by the court after the extension was already given in his absence.
Then on 2nd December 2022 the Lam only paid Nu 1 mn and again without Changlo’s presence or consent the Lam was given another month till 2 January 2023 to pay the rest of the money which amounted to Nu 1.85 mn. Again Changlo signed the form after the decision was taken hoping to get the final sum.
Since the Lam didn’t pay the rest of the money in the given time period Changlo approached Justice Sangay Khandu on 30th January 2023 and the Justice issued an order to the Lam to pay by 15 February 2023 asking him to pay the remaining amount or face legal consequences.
The Lam did not pay and Changlo again approached Justice Sangay Khandu who on 4th April 2023 issued one more order asking him to pay by 17 April 2023 or bear the legal consequences.
With the final date passing by Changlo again approached Justice Sangay Khandu asking for an arrest order to be issued as the Lam was not returning the money.
Justice Sangay Khandu and his legal clerk even called the lam over the phone but their calls were not received.
Changlo said the conclusion was drawn to send an arrest warrant. Changlo said that a legal clerk of the Justice even prepared such an order and the final step for the Justice was to put it to the weekly judicial conference of all the Justices along with the Chief Justice.
No arrest order and a ping pong ball
However, when Changlo after a few days approached the office of the Justice he was told that the Chief Justice had granted his opponent a further one-month deferment from 21st April 2023 onwards.
On the 4th of May he wrote a letter to the Chief Justice specifying the deferment given to his opponent on 21st of April 2023 and previous deferments but not yet receiving his money. He wanted to meet the Chief Justice with the letter but he was not allowed in and only his letter was taken. This letter was forwarded to Justice Sangay Khandu.
Changlo waited for the deferment period to be over and he still not did not get his money. He again visited the office of Justice Sangay Khandu who asked him to now contact the Chief Justice. Changlo was told that the Chief Justice had granted yet another extension to the Lam.
Changlo in frustration wrote a second letter on 28th July 2023 to go and see and Chief Justice, but again he was not allowed in and his letter was only forwarded to Justice Sangay Khandu.
However, Changlo said that each time he sent to see Justice Sangay Khandu he was told to see the Chief Justice but the staff of the Chief Justice would not let him see the Chief Justice but would forward his letter to Justice Sangay Khandu and ask him to go there.
Changlo had by now become a figurative ping pong ball being sent between the Justice and the Chief Justice.
After a while even the staff of Justice Sangay Khandu refused to allow him in too.
Changlo made a final attempt with a third letter to the Chief Justice on 22nd August 2023 but this time the staff in the CJ’s office would not even accept his letter saying they don’t accept similar appeals.
Changlo said, “A legal clerk in the Chief Justice’s office stated that they have forwarded the earlier letter and the Chief Justice had instructed him saying he has tried his best and returned 30 lakhs till now.”
Changlo said he was not satisfied with the reply of the legal clerk and demanded a better answer. He then went to see a Ramjam that works in the Chief Justice’s office but her office is located on a different floor.
He said the Ramjam received him properly and asked about his case and he said she was shocked to know about his case and the delay in judgment implementation. She then in front of him messaged the Chief Justice and informed him that he was there.
Changlo said the Chief Justice messaged her back saying that he should take up the matter with Justice Sangay Khandu. Changlo informed the Ramjam that the staff of Justice Sangay Khandu was no longer entertaining him and allowing him in to meet the Justice even.
It was a Friday and she took him to the office of Justice Sangay Khandu and where she had an almost hour long meeting with the Justice while Changlo waited outside. She came out saying he should come on Tuesday as the Lam would also be there.
The next week Changlo turned up but the Lam was not there and the staff of the Justice was not letting him go in. He told the PA that he would go in by himself if nobody allowed him in and the PA then showed him in.
“After getting in Dasho’s office, I was told not to come any further in his office and that he has instructed the chief justice’s Ramjam to follow up with the case and he has also explained his stance to the Ramjam.”
Further he quoted the example given by the Justice saying, “He even cited an example of a breastfeeding mother whose milk has run out and can’t feed her child anymore. He also said while I come to the court for money, the Justice doesn’t have any money to give me. To provide him the money he has to arrest the Lam for which he said he doesn’t have any authority by himself.”
“At that point I thought to myself, I am also a citizen of this country and to get justice if I don’t come here to the highest court where am I supposed to ask help from. It saddened me thinking that now I have nowhere to seek justice,” said Changlo.
Grievance Unit
Changlo then decided to go to the Grievance Unit of the judiciary headed by the Registrar General of the High Court on 29th August 2023 and narrated his story there to the Registrar General and was instructed to give it in writing. He made the letter and submitted it.
He said that it’s been a year now since the verdict was issued and given the several deferments his opponents should have paid the remaining amount by now but it is not happening.
Further, he said, “If the Lam was the one who gave me the money and I was the one who received it, then it wouldn’t have been long for me to be behind the bars and I wouldn’t have been able to come out. However, since I am the one who had to get the money back from the Lam, everything seems to be going in his favor.”
“I come from a very humble family and I need the money as it means a lot for me and my family. I have five children of whom three sons are unemployed, one daughter just recently left abroad and the youngest daughter runs a small restaurant in Paro but it is not doing well due to the lesser customers and she is even behind on the rent.”
Changlo’s questions to the Supreme Court
“However, now even if I don’t get my remaining amount back, it does not matter anymore and instead I am coming forward in the media to ask if the law applies only to humble people like us and not to influential people.”
“I also want to ask if the Supreme Court which is the highest court in the land cannot and will not implement its own judgment then where do we go for legal justice.”
“I would also like to know how the Supreme Court can issue a verdict signed by the Chief Justice and three Justices saying to pay Nu 5.8 mn and then later reduce it to Nu 4.8 mn in another verdict four months later. I can’t understand how the Supreme Court issued two verdicts in my case and agreed to reduce the amount as I was not even consulted.”
Changlo also said that the case has cost him a lot of wasted time and money. He said he stays in a village in Paro and each time he comes here it costs him a whole day and fuel expenses.
In the last one year since the judgement he has spent over 60 working days coming to the Supreme Court trying to request it to fully implement its own verdict.
With him being forced to put up multiple applications he says its cost Nu 500 per page and he has spent a lot of money doing this.
He said after he was told by the Justice and the Chief Justice staff not to come anymore he got so desperate that he wanted to offer Cha (prostration) to the Chief Justice in the Supreme Court premises when the Chief Justice is heading to office and back with the request to uphold the Supreme Court verdict but the police did not allow him to do so.
The Supreme Court Responds
The Judiciary Media Unit replying on behalf of the Supreme Court said the Supreme Court’s final judgment was sent on 25th August 2022. Lam Gyeltshen paid 2 mn on 22nd September 2022 and on 2nd December 2022 he paid 1 mn.
For the remaining 1.85 mn Lam Gyeltshen asked additional time after which he couldn’t pay any amount.
Changlo than appealed to the Khading Bench on 30th January 2023, after which the court sent an order to Gyeltshen to return the remaining amount within 15th February 2023.
The judiciary media unit mentioned that only in cases where the person doesn’t pay any amount, they send the arrest warrant, however Gyeltshen had paid 3 mn already.
On 14th February 2023 Gyeltshen requested the Bench to provide him two months’ additional time to return the remaining amount. However even after the given additional time he didn’t pay the money whereby Changlo appealed to the court.
On 4th April, the court again sent an order to Gyeltshen stating that if within the given time period he couldn’t pay the amount an arrest warrant would be sent. Lam Gyeltshen again requested additional time stating that he couldn’t manage the amount and that he was looking for other sources. The Lam also informed the court that he does not have any family to pay the loan off for him and him being locked up would mean no payment.
Even after the given additional time, he didn’t pay the money. The Khading Bench focal person was following up the case and sent several reminders to him. Around that same time Gyeltshen requested that he was doing eye check-up and sent medical reports to the bench.
The Justice called Gyeltshen stating about the additional deferments given by the Khading bench court and Gyeltshen not paying the remaining amount.
However, Gyeltshen requested for further additional time as he said he was undergoing an eye operation and that he is trying to manage the remaining amount within the month.
The judiciary media unit also mentioned that recently Changlo approached the grievance unit since he hasn’t got the remaining amount. Still, Gyeltshen requested that he is trying to mange the money and stated his medical condition.
Further the judiciary media unit stated that the court has been following the procedures and since Gyeltshen is currently not doing well and is under medical care the court couldn’t send the arrest warrant. Even if they send an arrest warrant, he would eventually be forwarded to the hospital with his condition.
The media unit said that given his health condition, him paying Nu 3 mn to the plaintiff and the fact that he did not have family members to pay the loan by selling his assets restricted the Khading Bench Justice from issuing an arrest warrant against Gyeltshen for now. They said that the court has been constantly following up with the case.
Changlo’s rebuttal
However, Changlo said that he finds it very difficult to believe that it takes around 8 months for an eye operation to be done and heal.
He said the Lam is lying about not having family as the Lam had admitted in Paro court that he does not want to sell the flat as his wife is not happy with it.
Changlo also said that it is not true that the Lam is struggling to pay back the money as the Lam has an entire building in Thimphu and land and assets in both Thimphu and Paro. He said the court should investigate these excuses including the medical one. He said the Supreme Court has also still not answered how it issued two verdicts on the same case and reduced the amount due by Nu 1 mn.
