KATHMANDU: The Supreme Court has issued an interim order directing the government to issue embossed vehicle number plates in Devanagari script, halting plans to continue using English-only plates.
A bench of Justices Kumar Regmi and Mahesh Sharma Paudel made the order on Sunday, staying the Department of Transport Management’s August 19 notice, which aimed to implement embossed plates in English based on an August 5 ministerial committee decision.
The court noted that earlier legal provisions required English letters on number plates, but an amendment on April 27, 2023, allows plates in Devanagari, English, or a mix, giving priority to Devanagari. The Language Commission had also recommended using Devanagari for electronic signals in its August 17, 2025, meeting.
Citing constitutional provisions, including Article 7 mandating Nepali in Devanagari as the official language, the court said the August 5, 2025, decision should not be implemented until further review.
The writ petition was filed by Ram Bahadur Raut, challenging the government’s plan to issue embossed number plates only in English.
