Day 2 Of New CJI: Tussle Between SC Collegium And Central Government Over Judicial Appointments

A bench of Justices Sanjay K Kaul and A S Oka issued notice to the Union Law secretary today, in response to a petition questioning the central government’s delay in processing names recommended by the collegium for appointment as judges. 

The master of the roster is the Chief Justice of India (CJI) and as soon as Justice D Y Chandrachud took over the office, this matter was listed. 

Interestingly, the bench has stated that, “Only the appointment must be issued after the second reiteration. Putting names on hold is not acceptable; it is becoming a tool to force these people to withdraw their names, as has happened”.

The petition was filed by Advocates Association Bengaluru, which claimed that the centre’s failure to process the names recommended for appointment is in violation of the law laid down by the Supreme Court.

Senior Advocate Vikas Singh, representing the petitioner, asked the bench on Friday (11 November) to initiate contempt proceedings against the centre. 

He went on to mention that, “It has been five weeks since the name of Justice Dipankar Dutta was proposed. It should have been approved in a matter of days”.

To this, the bench remarked that there are 11 names awaiting approval from the central government, the oldest of which dates back to September 2021.

It further stated that the delay in approving names causes lawyers who have been recommended for elevation, to withdraw their names, depriving the judiciary of their expertise.