Centre seeks more social diversity in judges’ appointment

Subject : Polity

Concept :

As per the Memorandum of Procedure for appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts, the government appoints only those persons who are recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium
Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts are appointed under Articles 124, 217 and 224 of the Constitution of India, that do not provide for reservation for any caste or class.
As per information provided by the recommenders, out of 604 High Court Judges appointed since 2018 till now, 458 Judges belong to the General Category.
18 judges belong to the SC category, nine are from the ST category, 72 from OBC category, 34 from Minority category and for the remaining 13 judges.

What prevents the judiciary from ensuring social diversity?

A report prepared by the American bar Association’s Center for Human Rights, published, reveals the “persistence of implicit biases of upper-caste judges toward their colleagues from the Dalit community”. It quotes a former Chief Justice of a high court as disclosing that “he faced resistance from his upper-caste colleagues whenever he considered a Dalit lawyer for appointment as a judge in that High Court.”
A retired upper caste Supreme Court judge quoted in the report admits the existence of a bias against Dalit judges in the higher judiciary that they are less meritorious since they are appointed through reservation, and which is why they don’t get easily promoted.

How did Parliament seek to ensure social diversity in judiciary?

The Report by the Parliamentary Committee on the Welfare of SCs and STs submitted in 2001, recommended in this regard, that Articles 124 and 217 of the Constitution be suitably amended to include the judiciary within the ambit of reservation, and simultaneously a Judiciary Act may be enacted to spell out the governing principles of the proper functioning of the Judiciary, especially the Supreme Court and the High Courts.
The Report by the Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, submitted in 2006 considered this issue in depth and categorically recommended reservation in favor of the SC, ST and OBCs in the higher judiciary, as with recruitment to all other public services in the country.
Another recommendation is the formation of an All-India Judicial Service to recruit judges for the subordinate judiciary across the country, with reservation being applicable to the post of District Judges in all states. But there have been strong reservations against this proposal on the ground of federalism.