Process of judicial appointments to superior court not prerogative of single individual: SC
- September 9, 2024
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
Process of judicial appointments to superior court not prerogative of single individual: SC
Sub :Polity
Sec: Judiciary
Context:
- A Supreme Court bench delivered its verdict on a plea by two senior-most district and sessions judges serving in Himachal Pradesh, who had alleged that their merit and seniority were not considered by the high court collegium in selection of names for high court judgeship.
What the Supreme Court said:
- The process of judicial appointments to a superior court is not the prerogative of an individual.
- Instead, it is a collaborative and participatory process involving all collegium members.
- The underlying principle is that the process of appointment of judges must reflect the collective wisdom that draws from diverse perspectives.
- The court also stressed on the need to protect certain sensitive information in matters involving appointment of judges and said disclosing such information would compromise not only the privacy of an individual but also the integrity of the process.
Background of the case
A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and Prashant Kumar Mishra delivered its verdict on a plea by two senior-most district and sessions judges serving in Himachal Pradesh — Chirag Bhanu Singh and Arvind Malhotra — who had alleged that their merit and seniority were not considered by the high court collegium in selection of names for high court judgeship.
It said collegium of the Himachal Pradesh High Court should reconsider the names of these two judicial officers for elevation as high court judges.
Constitutional Provision regarding judicial appointment
- Article 217 of Indian Constitution covers the appointment and conditions of a High Court Judge.
- It says that every Judge of a High Court shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, the Governor of the State.
- In the case of appointment of a Judge other than the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of the High Court shall also be consulted.
- The Government have, in consultation with the Chief Justice of India, decided as a matter of policy to appoint the Chief Justice of all High Courts from outside.
Eligibility
- A person shall not be qualified for appointment as a Judge of a High Court unless he is a citizen of India and—
- has for at least ten years held a judicial office in the territory of India; or
- has for at least ten years been an advocate of a High Court in any State specified in the First Schedule or of two or more such Courts in succession.
- A High Court judge holds office until they are 62 years old.
About Collegium System:
- The Collegium system is a mechanism used for the appointment and transfer of judges in the higher judiciary in India, specifically the Supreme Court (SC) and High Courts (HC).
- It is a judge-led appointment system, not mentioned in the Constitution, but evolved through judicial interpretations.
Evolution of the Collegium System:
- First Judges Case (1981):
- Executive had primacy in judicial appointments.
- The role of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) was to be consulted, but advice tendered by CJI is not binding.
- SC held that consultation does not mean concurrence.
- Second Judges Case (1993):
- Overturned the First Judges Case saying consultation means concurrence.
- Introduced the Collegium system, giving primacy to the CJI in judicial appointments.
- Advice given by CJI is binding. However, the advice should not be CJI’s individual opinion. CJI has to form the opinion after consulting two senior-most judges in the SC.
- Third Judges Case (1998):
- Collegium expanded to include a five-member body (CJI + four senior-most SC judges).
- High Court appointments handled by a 3-judge collegium (CJI + 2 senior-most judges).
Composition of Collegium:
- Supreme Court: CJI + 4 senior-most judges of the Supreme Court.
- High Court: CJI of the respective HC + 2 senior-most judges of that HC.
Process of Appointment:
- Judges are appointed based on the recommendation of the Collegium.
- The President of India formally appoints the judges after Collegium recommendations.
National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act, 2014:
- The act sought to replace the Collegium system with a commission involving members of the judiciary, executive, and civil society.
- However, NJAC was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2015 as unconstitutional, re-establishing the Collegium system.