Prashant Bhushan calls for enquiry against Justice Manjunath

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and lawyer Prashant Bhushan on Tuesday said that an enquiry should be set up against Karnataka High Court judge K.L Manjunath and that his removal should be recommended by the Chief Justice of India himself.

"It has been reported that he has been recommended to be appointed as the chief justice of Haryana and Punjab. But this is a case which should be taken up for an inquiry and his removal should be recommended by the chief justice himself," said Bhushan.

"I have received some documents which unequivocally show that Justice Manjunath has amassed a lot of properties in the name of his daughter, his wife and his mother-in-law which cannot be explained from his known sources of income," he said.

"It also shows he has as a judge decided cases in which his wife and daughter's interest were directly involved. Prima facie all these materials suggest for a clear case for his impeachment and removal," he added.

It has been reported that Manjunath had illegally bought a prime plot from a housing society in 2004 and also presided over cases involving the society.

The Supreme Court collegium had recommendation to elevate Karnataka High Court judge KL Manjunath as Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court but the NDA government had returned the collegium file, asking it to reconsider the elevation of KL Manjunath after these reports came into light.

However, Manjunath is being backed by the judges' collegium for a promotion despite the central government's opposition.