A BJP MP today suggested allowing government and public representatives to have a say in appointments of judges and said he will press for his "apolitical" demand during the upcoming Winter Session of Parliament which gets underway on November 26.
Speaking to reporters here, North-West Delhi MP Udit Raj said, public leaders should have a role in the appointments of judges and cited examples of countries like the US, the UK, Germany and Russia, where the MP said, "followed" systems in which politicos/elected representatives picked judges.
Raj, however, maintained his demand was "apolitical" and he was pushing the issue on behalf of "socio-cultural" All India Confederation of SC/ST Organisations, which he heads.
"We demand the government, public representatives should have a say in appointments of judges. We feel, in highest, evolved democracies, judges do not have role in appointment of judges. If a section of politicians is bad (in India), does that mean entire democracy itself is bad," the MP asked.
Claiming that the collegium system, in which judges appoint judges lacks accountability, he said, today, a common man can not get justice...We are going to hold a rally on December 7 at Ramlila Maidan where we will take up this issue, the Lok Sabha member said.
He added that candidates from Dalit and backward communities too be given opportunities when backlog of appointing 400 judges is to be filled.
When asked if he had sought permission from party leadership before taking up the issue, Raj claimed, "The Confederation, a socio-cultural organisation, of employees has been raising the issue since 1997 continuously. This is going to be our 19th rally," the MP said and added he had raised the issue when the previous his party was in opposition.
The Delhi MP also maintained it is the "responsibility of all" to fight for implementation of democracy in the country.
In a setback to NDA government led by the BJP, Supreme Court had on October 16 struck down as "unconstitutional" the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act that was brought in to replace the over two-decade-old collegium system of judges appointing judges in the higher judiciary.
In the landmark judgement that enabled the collegium system to continue, the apex court, which quashed the NJAC Act in an unanimous decision, also declared as unconstitutional the 99th amendment to the Constitution to bring in the Act to replace the collegium system.
