The Supreme Court Friday quashed a writ petition filed against the government for alleged violation of the Geneva Convention in the current conflict with the Maoists, reports said Saturday.

A joint bench of judges Hari Prasad Sharma and Khila Raj Regmi decided against the petition, saying, the Geneva Convention was not applicable in an internal conflict, and can only be brought into effect in the case of war between two countries, the Himalayan Times said.

The court, meanwhile, issued directives to the government to formulate a separate law, if it feels the need, and in case the government wants to make provisions of the Convention applicable to its conflict with the Maoists, the daily added.

The ruling came in response to a year-old writ petition filed by advocates Rajaram Dhakal and Raju Gurung. The petition had charged both the government and the Maoists of violating the Geneva Convention by killing hundreds of innocent people, according to the daily.

Nepal had ratified the Geneva Convention on February 7, 1964. nepalnews.com mr Jan 10