It is clear that the law minister is on mission mode to tame the judiciary.

THE TUG of war between judiciary and law minister is intensifying on each passing day. This time for the reason that the Law Minister Kiren Rijiju has again questioned collegium system by asking who would carry out judicial work if judges were included in administrative appointments. The law minster also claimed that a small number of retired judges who are members of the anti-India gang are attempting to turn the Indian judiciary into the opposition.

The minister was speaking at the India Today Conclave, where Chief Justice of India Justice D Y Chandrachud defended the Collegium system by saying, ‘not every system is perfect but this is the best system we have developed’ and the ‘object was to protect the independence of the judiciary, which is a cardinal value’.

The 50th Chief Justice of India cited the recent judgment of a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court in the appointment of Election Commissioners case, to buttress his point.“Dabaav ka sawaal hi paidanahihota; Election Commission wala judgment dekhiye, agar dabaavhota, tohyeh judgment aata? [The question of pressure does not even arise; see the Election Commission judgment]. The largest litigant is the State and we are holding against the State in large number of issues: crime, employment, insurance. We are living in an age where we have become distrustful of public institutions. There is absolutely no issue and we are constantly holding the government to accountability.”(Bar and Bench)

According to Sanjay Hegde, senior Supreme Court lawyer, “It is clear that the law minister is on mission mode to tame the judiciary. His recent statement against retired judges who “were part of the anti-India gang”, taken together with other retired judges joining the Rajya Sabha or becoming Governors, shows the government’s desire to bend serving judges to their will. The current judges seem to be trying to maintain a semblance of independence, but the government’s bullying and blustering, detracts from judicial independence in a big way.”

SY Quraishi, former Chief Election Commissioner during a special interview under face-to-face column with this scribe had said in March 2019, “We have more than 40 electoral reform proposals pending with the government for the last two or three decades. One reform we have been demanding is that people against whom serious or heinous criminal cases like rape, dacoity, murder, kidnapping and corruption are pending should be debarred from contesting elections before their conviction and even during their trial. We also want the appointment system of Commissioners to change.”

On the Collegium system, the former CEC had said, “The Election Commission of India is the most powerful Commission in the world but our system is the most deficient. We are the only Commission in the world appointed by the government of the day without wider consultation. In most countries, there is a Collegium System where the leader of opposition is consulted. We have a Collegium System in India. The Judges, Central Vigilance Commissioner, Information Commissioner are all appointed through Collegium. Then why not Election Commissioners?

“In many countries, there are not only Collegium systems but full parliament hearings. In some countries, the interview of the candidate is live telecasted for people to judge. The trust of political parties and voters in the Election Commission is paramount, and hence collegium is the best way forward”, said Ex-CEC S.Y. Quraishi

According to Subhash C. Kashyap former Secretary-General of Lok Sabha,“There is general crisis of character. Political culture has declined and constitutional culture even more. There is decline in constitutional political culture also. Such problem arises due to crisis in character and men are of the same frailties whether in judiciary, government, EC and parliament. As former supreme court judge has said, to believe that those in politics are evil and in judiciary are angels would be wrong. There are good and bad everywhere.”

He added, “So simply changing procedure will not change unless and until the man who holds the top post is a man of character. Simply introducing collegium in election commission will not make any difference because people who will be selected are the same system. One may ask a to what extent the collegium system in judiciary and other institutions made any difference.”

Senior Police officer, Julio Ribeiro who has served as former Commissioner of Mumbai Police from 1982 to 1986, Director General of Central Reserve Police Force, Director General Police of Gujarat and Punjab in his article, on, “Appoint persons of integrity,” in The Tribune India on 17 March has reasonably argued, “The Supreme Court’s solution to the problem of appointment of unbiased and truly independent Election Commissioners may not turn out to be the ideal or the ultimate solution. All institutions are as good or bad as the persons who man them. Finally, it depends on the individuals chosen to lead it. The Opposition leader at that moment of time may be one who is contemplating a change of loyalties. Even the CJI, in office when the committee of three meets, may not be without any bias! But the option chosen by the Constitution Bench appears to be the best that can be thought of in the prevailing circumstances.”

Also Read: Keep judiciary away from Govt interference

“The Supreme Court’s historic decision is considered to have a critical effect on maintaining the Election Commission’s independence and autonomy. The EC has taken a lot of heat over the years for its functioning due to its prejudiced and selective approaches. A three-member team made up of the Prime Minister, the leader of the opposition, and the Chief Justice of India would henceforth be responsible for selecting the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners, according to the latest SC verdict”, said Dr Narender Nagarwal, Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi

“The judgment added that, in the event that there was no leader of the opposition, as there currently is, the person serving alongside the PM and the CJI would be the head of the opposition party with the largest presence in the Lok Sabha. The NDA government is in an awkward position as a result of the recent Supreme Court rulings, notably the one on the Adani controversy, as the opposition may now claim marginal triumphs. The rulings are significant since they arrive before a number of state elections this year and the Lok Sabha election 2024,” said Nagarwal.

Anup Chandra Pandey, the current election commissioner’s tenure will end on February 14 next year. It is likely that the appointment of an Election Commissioner will be debated again at that point of time.

Also Read: Judiciary must remain detached from political ideology to ensure independence

However, experts are of the opinion that the Supreme Court’s judgement regarding the nomination of the Election Commissioner may have an impact on the assembly elections and the Lok Sabha elections in 2024 if he is an honest man of character.

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