Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has stepped back from his attempt to challenge the integrity of a three-judge bench, dropping a Supreme Court case that questioned their impartiality in the ongoing impeachment dispute.
Court documents filed on May 4 show that Gachagua withdrew his cross-appeal at the Supreme Court of Kenya, effectively ending his push to overturn an earlier ruling that allowed the judges to remain on the case. His legal team said the application no longer served any purpose after the court declined to suspend proceedings at the High Court.
Through lawyer Kamotho Njomo, Gachagua argued that the matter had been overtaken by events, as hearings into the substantive petitions are already underway in Nairobi.
The abandoned case had sought to disqualify Justices Eric Ogolla, Anthony Mrima and Fredah Mugambi, with the former Deputy President alleging bias and conflict of interest in how they were handling the consolidated petitions challenging his removal from office.
Those claims were previously dismissed by the Court of Appeal of Kenya, which ruled in May 2025 that there was no evidence to justify recusal. The judges were therefore cleared to continue presiding over the matter.
Njomo indicated that the defence will now concentrate entirely on the core constitutional questions before the High Court, abandoning further litigation over the composition of the bench.
The legal wrangles stem from the initial appointment of the three judges by Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu in October 2024. The appellate court later found that she did not have the authority under Article 165(4) to empanel the bench, casting doubt on the process used at the time.
That gap was subsequently addressed when Chief Justice Martha Koome reappointed the same judges, effectively regularising the panel and allowing proceedings to move forward without procedural uncertainty.
Even as Gachagua retreats from the bias argument, a separate case remains active at the Supreme Court, where the National Assembly of Kenya is contesting the appellate court’s interpretation of the Deputy Chief Justice’s powers. The outcome of that appeal is expected to have wider implications for how benches are constituted in future constitutional matters.
By dropping the challenge, Gachagua eliminates a parallel legal battle that risked slowing down the hearing of petitions, clearing the path for the High Court to proceed with determining the legality of his impeachment.