Nepal SC directs govt to frame rules within three months for regulated cannabis cultivation for medicinal, scientific and industrial use, while recreational use remains illegal
The court held that successive govts had failed to implement provisions of a law enacted in 1976 that already allowed limited cultivation under regulation. The verdict, delivered on May 18, 2025, remained unpublished for nearly 18 months after court records were destroyed during the violent Gen Z protests. The court criticised successive govts for failing to implement provisions of the Narcotic Drugs (Control) Act, 1976, which permits certain forms of regulated cultivation and medicinal use.
“The failure to do so amounts to a refusal or neglect by govt to discharge its legal obligations,” the court observed. Fifty years after Nepal banned all cannabis cultivation, Supreme Court has directed govt to frame regulations within three months to allow its controlled cultivation for medicinal, scientific and industrial purposes, potentially opening the door to a legal cannabis industry in the Himalayan nation. Its full text emerged only last week, bringing attention to a ban Nepal imposed under international pressure. The order did not permit recreational use, which remains illegal.