Next CJI’s appointment: Don’t question Govt’s intention: Prasad

NEED A CENTRAL SELECTION PROCESS FOR LOWER JUDICIARY

19/06/2018

NEW DELHI, Jun 18: The government's intention on the appointment of the next Chief Justice of India (CJI) should not be questioned, law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Monday, noting that when the incumbent names the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court as his successor as per convention, the executive will take a call.
He was responding to a question on whether the government will follow the laid-down conventions and procedures to appoint Justice Ranjan Gogoi as the next Chief Justice when incumbent Dipak Misra demits office on October 2.
"The question is imaginary ... as far as the appointment of the Chief Justice of India is concerned, the convention is clear ... the sitting chief justice names the senior-most judge (of the top court) as his successor. When the name comes to us, we will discuss it," he told a press conference held to highlight the achievements of the law ministry in the past four years.
He also said that no one had the "right to question our intention".
Speculations surrounding Justice Gogoi's appointment as the next CJI emerged following the unprecedented press conference of four senior judges in January this year when they had criticised Justice Misra over various issues, especially the manner of allocation of cases to certain benches.
Justices J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan B Lokur and Kurian Joseph addressed the unprecedented press conference, perhaps a first in the history of Indian judiciary.
According to the memorandum of procedure, a document which guides the appointment and transfer of judges of the apex court and the 24 high courts, "Appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office."
Days before the CJI's retirement, the law minister seeks his recommendation for the appointment of his successor.
"Whenever there is any doubt about the fitness of the senior-most judge to hold the office of the Chief Justice of India, consultation with other judges ... would be made for appointment of the next Chief Justice of India," the document states.
Responding to another question on the delay in finalising the memorandum of procedure for appointment of judges, Prasad said discussions were on and the Supreme Court and the government would have to finalise the document together.
"Our view (on the MoP) is that the norms of those selected (as judges) have to be mentioned (in the document)," he said.
Admitting that there was a "difference of opinion" between the government and the judiciary on the creation of an all-India judicial service, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today said there was a "compelling" need to have a centralised selection process to appoint members of the lower judiciary.
He also made it clear that the government did not want to encroach upon the autonomy of the high courts as far as the subordinate judiciary was concerned.
There is a difference of opinion, as far as an all-India judicial service is concerned...the government of India or the state governments have no role," he said.
He said that members of the subordinate judiciary are recruited by the high courts or public service commissions on the directions of the high courts.
"It is a work in progress...there is a compelling need to have a centralised selection process (for lower courts)," he said.
Prasad had last week pitched for a national-level entrance test for "talent infusion" into the subordinate judiciary.
He had said the all-India examination would allow the pool of talented young lawyers who graduate every year from national law universities to be part of the subordinate judiciary.
The government has in the past proposed an all-India judicial service to be conducted the Union Public Service Commission.
But nine high courts have opposed the proposal to have an all-India service for lower judiciary. Eight others have sought changes in the proposed framework and only two have supported the idea.
The Narendra Modi government has given a fresh push to the long-pending proposal to set up the new service to have a separate cadre for lower judiciary in the country. The idea was first mooted in the 1960s.
Seeking to overcome the divergence of views, the government had recently suggested to the Supreme Court various options, including an NEET-like examination to recruit judges to the lower judiciary.
National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) is conducted for admission to medical colleges.
There were vacancies of 4,452 judges in subordinate courts in the country as per the figures released on December 31, 2015. While the sanctioned strength is 20,502, the actual number of judges and judicial officers in subordinate courts is 16,050.
At present, various high courts and state service commissions hold exams to recruit judicial officers.
The government is strengthening laws to deal with absconding economic offenders such as Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Vijay Mallya and aggressively pursuing cases against them in courts abroad, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said today.
He said the government had to bring in Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance, 2018, as a Bill in this matter could not be passed in Parliament due to disruptions.
"We are chasing Nirav Modi and we have attached properties belonging to him and Choksi," Prasad said, adding in case of Mallya, India's lawyers are aggressively pursuing extradition request and related cases.
"We will not spare anyone whatever be their stature or position," the minister asserted.
The ordinance gives authorities powers to attach and confiscate the proceeds of crime and properties of economic offenders such as bank fraudsters or loan defaulters fleeing the country.
It is aimed at deterring economic offenders from evading the process of law by remaining outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts, an official statement has said.
"The need for the Ordinance had arisen as there have been instances of economic offenders fleeing the jurisdiction of Indian courts, anticipating the commencement, or during the pendency, of criminal proceedings," it said without naming anyone.
The law is aimed at quickly recovering losses to exchequer or public sector banks in cases of frauds like the alleged USD 2 billion fraud by absconding diamantaire Nirav Modi.
Giving reasons for bringing in the ordinance, the statement said the absence of such offenders from Indian courts hampers investigation and wastes the court's time and undermines the rule of law.

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