Kathmandu, June 20 -- On Wednesday, Bhairam Bote and Khadga Bahadur Bote sat quietly in the courtyard beside Nepal's ageing Supreme Court building, once again waiting for justice.

The brothers from Nawalparasi East have travelled repeatedly to Kathmandu since August 2018 to pursue a land dispute they hoped was nearing its end. After years of litigation, they believed the Supreme Court would finally deliver a verdict.

But the court had other plans. Justices Sunil Kumar Pokharel and Nityananda Pandey sent the dispute back to the High Court for a fresh hearing, meaning the brothers must endure another round of litigation that could take years to resolve.

The brothers argue that a neighbour illegally registered ancestral land that their fa...