Enough is enough

GOVERNANCE

judiciary selections

 

Enough is enough

 

The Government now proposes to vest the power of appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts in a broad-based mechanism

 

by Rakesh Bhatnagar

 

The Supreme Court’s collegium of five judges, that choose who is suitable to adorn the prestigious black gown and become one amongst them, is believed to have shaken the Law Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office as it ignored the President’s recommendation to reconsider the nomination of three incumbents who were found to be qualified for slots in the top judiciary.

 

This was not the first time that the collegium had overlooked the President’s concern and proceeded on its determined path. This time, however, there’s been a massive uproar over judicial discretion, the vacant post of judges and, of course, the mounting backlog of cases. The collegium’s move came even as two cases were reported alleging corruption – one by Karnataka High Court judge P D Dinakaran and the other by Calcutta High Court judge Soumitra Sen. They faced impeachment proceedings. While Dinakaran resigned during the inquiry under the Judges Inquiry Act, Sen followed his footsteps and put in his papers when Rajya Sabha started proceedings against him. Both were appointed by the collegium. Read More