Fali and Attorney Mukul suggested that the matter should go to a larger bench
Supreme Court of India
New Delhi: A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday indicated that a larger bench of nine or 11 judges may have to hear the batch of petitions challenging the validity of the National Judicial Appointments Commission and the constitution amendment laws enacted to replace the collegium system of appointment of judges to High Courts and apex court.
A five-judge Bench comprising Justices J.S. Khehar, J. Chelameswar, Madan B. Lokur, Kurian Joseph and A.K. Goel gave this indication. The Bench told the counsel for parties that since the issued involved vital questions of Constitutional law relating to the basic structure of the Constitution the matter may be referred to a larger bench of 9 or 11 judges.
Even as senior counsel Fali Nariman and Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi suggested that the matter should go to a larger bench, Justice Khehar said “Yes we may also eventually refer the matter to a larger bench.,”
Earlier the AG told the bench that since most of the petitioners were relying on the ruling of the nine-judges bench in the 1993 and 1998 judgments of the apex court which accorded primacy to the CJI and collegium in the appointment of judges, the matter should ideally be referred to a 11-judge bench ruling.
The AG made it clear that Centre did not agree with the two rulings of the 9 judges which could be finally settled only by a still larger bench of 11 judges.
He said that appointment of judges to the apex and high courts would eventually be subject to public scrutiny as any citizen could seek information about the appointments through RTI. Arguments will continue on Wednesday.
( Source : dc )
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