Judicial Appointments

SCBA urges reforms in collegium, seeks merit-based judge appointments

SCBA president wrote to the CJI and Law Minister, citing flaws in the collegium system and warning that delays in reform erode judicial integrity and public trust

SC begins hearing on judicial officers' eligibility for district judges

The Supreme Court on Tuesday commenced hearing on a significant legal question on whether judicial officers, who had completed seven years of practice as advocates prior to joining the bench, can be appointed as district judges under vacancies earmarked for the Bar. A five-judge Constitution bench comprising Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justices MM Sundresh, Aravind Kumar, SC Sharma and K Vinod Chandran started hearing 30 petitions, having wide ramifications for judicial recruitment across the country. The bench is examining questions pertaining to interpretation of Article 233 of the Constitution that governs appointment of district judges. Appointments of persons to be, and the posting and promotion of, district judges in any State shall be made by the Governor of the State in consultation with the High Court exercising jurisdiction in relation to such State, Article 233 says. It also says: A person not already in the service of the Union or of the State shall only be eligible to b

SC to hear on Sept 23 issue concerning eligibility of judges for ADJ posts

The Supreme Court on Friday said it will commence hearing from September 23 on a key question whether a judicial officer, who has already completed seven years in the bar prior to joining a bench, is entitled to become an additional district judge (ADJ) in view of a vacancy. A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justices MM Sundresh, Aravind Kumar, SC Sharma and K Vinod Chandran will commence the hearing on September 23 and hear arguments over three days, till September 25. The key question for adjudication is whether a judicial officer, who had completed seven years of practice at the Bar before joining judicial service, can be considered for appointment as a district judge against vacancies earmarked for advocates under Bar quota. Article 233 of the Constitution deals with the appointment of district judges and reads: Appointments of persons to be, and the posting and promotion of, district judges in any State shall be made by the governor of the State in consultation wit

Govt remains silent on question of reintroducing law on judges' appointment

The government on Thursday maintained silence on whether it will consider bringing again the National Judicial Appointments Commission bill to overturn the present collegium system to appoint judges. Responding to a question on the government's "view" relating to the National Judicial Appointments Committee (NJAC) and whether it would "again consider" bringing in the NJAC legislation, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal gave a detailed response on what the now struck down law sought to do. But he was silent on whether the government will consider bringing the NJAC bill. In a written response in Rajya Sabha, he said to replace the Collegium system of appointments of judges of the Supreme Court and the high courts with a "more broad-based, transparent, accountable appointment mechanism" and to bring greater objectivity in the system, the Constitution (Ninety-Ninth Amendment) Act, 2014 and the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014 were brought. These laws came into force on ..

Lawyers to abstain from Justice Sharma's swearing-in, may skip his court

Expressing anguish at the transfer of Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma from the Delhi High Court to the Calcutta High Court, lawyers' bodies here have jointly informed the Chief Justice that they would abstain from attending the swearing-in ceremony of the judge and may not appear before his court. Justice Sharma was transferred from Delhi to the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday. The Bar Association, the Bar Library Club and the Incorporated Law Society also urged the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court in a joint representation not to assign any judicial work to Justice Sharma, whose transfer was notified by the Union government on a recommendation by the Collegium of the Supreme Court. "In the event, any determination is assigned to the Learned Judge, there is a possibility that our members may not appear before the Learned Judge," they said in the representation. Lawyers stayed away from attending proceedings at the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday to protest the recommendation for

Pakistan passes constitutional amendment bill to dilute power of judiciary

The Senate on Sunday passed the controversial 26th Constitution Amendment Bill, capping Pakistan's Chief Justice tenure for three years, amid opposition from jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's party. The upper house of the parliament voted 65-4 to approve the 26th Constitutional Amendment Bill with the required two-thirds majority. The government needed the support of 64 members. The bill, approved by the cabinet earlier in the day with the consensus among the ruling coalition partners, was presented in the Senate by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar. "I... wish to introduce a bill further to amend the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, the Constitution 26th Amendment Bill, 2024, Tarar said as he presented the bill in the upper house. "Is it opposed?" asked Senate Chairman Yousaf Raza Gilani, to which he received no response from the Senate members. The bill included 22 clauses of amendments. The upper house passed the bill clause-wise and all clauses got the ..

'Why is it pending': SC pulls up govt over non-appointment of judges

The Supreme Court Collegium is not a search committee for judges whose recommendations can be stalled, said CJI

Ukraine's new judges aim to build rule of law to realise European dreams

Appointments, long stalled by political tussles even before the war, follow an overhaul of judicial governance sought by the EU, which Kyiv aims to join to cement its shift from Moscow's orbit

HC appointments: Over 200 proposals sent by collegiums in various stages

Over 200 proposals sent by various high court collegiums for high court judgeship are at various stages of processing, the Lok Sabha was told on Friday. In a written reply, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal also cited an opinion of the Supreme Court Collegium that expression of views by a candidate does not disentitle him or her to hold a constitutional office so long as the person proposed for judgeship is a person of competence, merit and integrity. There have been instances in the past where the government had either held back or returned to the collegium for consideration names of persons who had expressed their views on various issues as advocates. Meghwal told the House that the government, as an important stakeholder in the process of appointment of Judges in the high courts and as laid down in the Memorandum of Procedure, provides inputs which mainly contain information on the suitability, competence and integrity of the candidates under consideration for appointment to high ..

Former CJI Ranjan Gogoi honoured with Assam's highest civilian award

Former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi was honoured on Tuesday with the Assam Baibhab, the highest civilian award in the state

SC refuses to stay Bill on appointment of CEC, ECs; issues notice to Centre

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the new law that provides for appointment of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners by a panel excluding the Chief Justice of India. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, however, agreed to examine a batch of petitions challenging the new law and issued notice to the Centre. The bench asked senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for Congress leader Jaya Thakur, who sought a stay on the new law, to serve a copy of the petition to the Centre's counsel. "Please stay this law. This is against the separation of powers," Singh said. The bench told Singh, "No, without hearing the other side, we can't. We will issue a notice." Several petitions, including Thakur's, have been filed in the apex court amid a political row over dropping the chief justice of India (CJI) from a panel empowered to choose the chief election commissioner (CEC) and election commissioners (ECs). Advocate Gopal Singh has also moved the t

SC recommends names of judicial officer, two advocates as MP HC judges

The Supreme Court collegium headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud on Tuesday recommended the name of judicial officer Ramkumar Choubey for appointment as Judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. The collegium, also comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and B R Gavai, recommended the names of advocates Deepak Khot and Pavan Kumar Dwivedi for appointment as Judges of the High Court of Madhya Pradesh. On the name of judicial officer Ramkumar Choubey, the collegium said it has scrutinised and evaluated the material placed on record. "The enquiries made by us with reliable sources to ascertain suitability of the candidate reveal that Shri Ramkumar Choubey is a competent officer suitable for elevation to the High Court. His service record shows that he has mostly been rated as a 'Very Good/Excellent officer'. "The Judgment Evaluation Committee constituted by the Chief Justice of the High Court has graded the quality of judgments authored by him as "Good/Excellent". Both the consultee-Judges

SC constitutes committee of judges for preparing SOP on adjournments

The Supreme Court has constituted a committee of judges for preparing a standard operating procedure (SOP) for lawyers seeking adjournment of proceedings. The panel has invited suggestions of the Bar and other stakeholders on the issue. The development comes after the Supreme Court Bar Association and the Supreme Court Advocate on Record Association raised concern over circulars issued by the top court about discontinuation of the practice of circulation of adjournment slips. The apex court had issued two circulars on December 5 and 22 regarding discontinuation of the practice. "In order to accommodate the request of listing maximum number of cases in the interest of litigants and in view of the ensuing winter vacation, all stakeholders to note that the practice of circulating adjournment slips/letters is discontinued with immediate effect till December 15, 2023. In case of any genuine difficulty, a request for adjournment can be made before the Court concerned," the circular issue

Prez bats for all-India judicial service to nurture talents in judiciary

President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday suggested the creation of an all-India judicial service which can select brilliant youngsters and nurture their talents from lower levels to higher levels in judiciary. Addressing the Constitution Day celebrations organised by the Supreme Court of India here, she said that the place of the judiciary in the constitutional framework remains "rather unique" and a "more varied representation of India's unique diversity on bench and bar definitely helps serve the cause of justice better". Murmu said one way to hasten this diversification process can be the creation of a system in which judges can be recruited from varied backgrounds through a process which is merit based, competitive and transparent. "There can be an all-India judicial service which can select brilliant youngsters and nurture and promote their talents from lower levels to higher levels," she said. Those who aspire to serve the bench can be selected from across the country to create a .

SC to hear Rahul Gandhi's appeal against Gujarat HC verdict on July 21

From refusing to pass directions to prohibit the slaughter of cow to reserving verdict on the rules of game for judoicial appointment, here's a list of important developments in the apex court today

SC judge recuses himself from Umar Khalid's plea on bail in UAPA case

Supreme Court judge Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra on Wednesday recused himself from hearing a plea filed by former JNU student Umar Khalid seeking bail in a UAPA case related to alleged conspiracy behind the riots here in February 2020. Khalid's petition challenging the October 18 last year order of the Delhi High Court, which had rejected his bail plea in the matter, came up for hearing before a bench of Justices A S Bopanna and Prashant Kumar Mishra. "This will come before some other bench. There is some difficulty for my brother (Justice Mishra) to take up this matter," Justice Bopanna said at the outset, without assigning any reason for Justice Mishra's recusal. Advocate Rajat Nair, appearing for the Delhi Police, told the bench that they have filed a counter affidavit but there is an objection shown by the apex court registry on it. "There are certain portion of statements which we have extracted, that portion is in vernacular," he said, adding, "That statement itself is in ..

Nearly 6 million cases pending in HCs, more than 69,000 in the SC: Govt

Over 69,000 cases are pending in the Supreme Court while there is a backlog of over 59 lakh cases in the country's 25 high courts, Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday. Citing details available on the SC website, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said in a written reply that 69,511 cases were pending in the top court as on February 1. "There are 59,87,477 cases pending in the high courts across the country as per the information available on National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) on February 1, 2023," he said. Out of these, 10.30 lakh cases were pending in the Allahabad High Court -- the biggest high court of the country. The Sikkim High Court has the least number of 171 cases. The government, Rijiju said, has taken several initiatives to provide "suitable environment" for expeditious disposal of cases by the Judiciary.

Unparalleled in democratic history of world: Dhankhar on SC's NJAC verdict

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday said the judiciary striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act in 2015 was "a scenario perhaps unparalleled in the democratic history of the world". He said parliamentary sovereignty and autonomy are quintessential for the survival of democracy and cannot be permitted to be compromised by the executive or judiciary. While referring to the Supreme Court scrapping the NJAC in 2015 -- which was enacted by the NDA government for appointments in higher judiciary -- the vice president said, "Such kind of a scenario is perhaps unparalleled in the democratic history of the world". "The executive is ordained to be in compliance with the constitutional prescription emanating from Parliament. It was obligated to adhere to the NJAC. Judicial verdict cannot run it down," he said at the 83rd All India Presiding Officers Conference (AIPOC), "Parliamentary sovereignty cannot be permitted to be diluted or compromised by the ...

There was no proposal to reintroduce a modified NJAC, says Centre

The Centre further said that out of the 34 judge strength of the Supreme Court, 27 judges are working in the, which puts the vacancy to 7

Top court issues notice to Centre over delay in judicial appointments

Top court issues notice to Centre over delay in judicial appointments