Kathmandu, Aug. 15 -- Tensions between the chief justice and senior justices of the Supreme Court are deepening over the formation of the constitutional bench, prompting a group of lawyers to draw their attention to ending the deadlock.

The country's top court has been divided sharply after Chief Justice Prakash Man Singh Raut in July came up with the plan to constitute the bench by drawing lots.

In a full court called to review the works in the third week of July, Raut presented a proposal to adopt a lottery system to select the justices for the bench. While junior justices welcomed the idea, senior justices including Sapana Pradhan Malla, Kumar Regmi and Hari Phuyal stood against it. They took the proposal as an act of distrust in the...