Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Oct 18: The nation’s citizens, according to Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju, are unhappy with the collegium system and it is the duty of the government to nominate judges in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution.
Speaking at the “Sabarmati Samvad,” which was sponsored by “Panchjanya,” a weekly publication published by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, he said this. He claimed that after observing that judges spend almost half of their time making appointment decisions, their principal duty of administering justice “suffers.”
The minister’s comments followed his declaration at a conference in Udaipur last month that the collegium system of appointments to the higher judiciary needed to be reconsidered.
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“Till 1993, every judge in India was appointed by the law ministry in consultation with the Chief Justice of India. We had very eminent judges at that time,” he said in response to a question on the process of appointment of judges.
“The Constitution is clear about it. It says that the President of India will appoint judges, which means the law ministry will appoint judges in consultation with the Chief Justice of India,” he further said.
The Supreme Court collegium, which consists of the four senior-most justices on the court, is led by the Chief Justice of India.
Although the government may object to or clarify the collegium’s recommendations, if the five-member committee reiterates them, the government is required by protocol to remove the names.
