Bill to scrap collegium system of appointing judges in RS

JAC will make the participants in the selection accountable and introduce 'transparency' in the selection process, states the Bill

Overcoming resistance from the judiciary, a Bill to scrap the collegium system of appointing judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts was introduced in the Rajya Sabha today.

The Bill, which entails Constitutional amendment, seeks to set up a Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) to recommend appointment and transfer of Supreme Court and High Court judges.

The Bill states that the JAC will make the participants in the selection accountable and introduce 'transparency' in the selection process.

With the creation of the proposed body, the Executive seeks to have a say in appointment of members to the higher judiciary.

India perhaps is the only country where judges appoint judges.

The Bill seeks to set up a panel headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) to appoint and transfer senior judges.

The other members of the proposed Commission would be two senior-most judges of the Supreme Court, the Law Minister, two eminent persons as members and Secretary (Justice) in the Law Ministry as Convener.

'The proposed Bill would enable equal participation of judiciary and executive, make the system of appointments more accountable, and thereby increase the confidence of the public in the institutions,' reads the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill.

The Law Ministry has been pushing the proposal, but some sections in the government as well as judiciary had reservations over its certain provisions.