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Supreme Court collegium
The Chief Justice of India (CJI) N.V. Ramana’s tenure is drawing to an end in a few days. The Ramana Collegium has been particularly successful.
Meeting frequently and working quickly, they took the perennial problem of judicial vacancies by its horns and turned it around.
The collegium, as a united front, was able to recommend numerous judicial appointments and scripted history by getting nine Supreme Court judges appointed in one go. Of the nine, Justice B.V. Nagarathna, is in line to be the first woman CJI in 2027- It is a system in which the Chief Justice of India and the four most senior judges of the Supreme Court decide on the appointments and transfers of Supreme Court judges.
- Indian law does not allow for it. When it comes to appointing and transferring judges, the judiciary should be given precedence over the executive branch of government.
- During the 1970s, tensions between the judiciary and executive branch were exacerbated by instances of court-packing (the practise of altering the makeup of a court's bench), wholesale replacements of justices of the high courts, and the appointment of two Chief Justices of India.
- Following a series of three decisions, the evolution of the collegium system began.
- On judicial appointments and transfers, the CJI's recommendation might be rejected if there are "cogent reasons." For the next 12 years, the Executive will have precedence over the Judiciary when it comes to appointing judges.
- Collegium system was introduced in the Second Judges case, in 1993. CJIs will have to consult a "collegium" of the two most senior judges in the highest court on judicial appointments, and this "collective judgement" will take precedence over any decisions made by government officials.
- During the Third Judges case of 1998, the Supreme Court extended the judicial collegium to include the CJI and four of his most senior judges.
Only the Intelligence Bureau (IB) can conduct an inquiry for the government if a judge is to be elevated to a High Court or Supreme Court position. When the collegium makes a decision, it is possible to protest to it and ask for clarifications.
If the names are returned to the government for reconsideration, the collegium has the power to veto the government.
A Memorandum of Procedure governs the appointment of the Chief Justice of India and the judges of the Supreme Court. Clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution allows the President to nominate the Chief Justice of India and the Supreme Court judges.
This position should be filled by the Supreme Court's most senior judge who is regarded suitable to hold it. A suggestion for his replacement is sought from the departing Chief Justice of India by the Union Law Minister.
As soon as the CJI approves, the Law Minister sends the communication to the Prime Minister, who in turn advises President Trump on the appointment.
SC Appointment of a judge: The collegium recommends a candidate to the Union Minister when a vacancy is expected in the Supreme Court. Collegium members, as well as the highest-ranking judge from the High Court to which the suggested person belongs, are consulted by the CJI.
Every judge's view should be written down and included in a file provided to the government by the Collegium and other judges consulted.
Having consulted non-judges, the CJI should create a memorandum of the substance of such consultation, which would be included in the file.
Collegium's recommendations would be forwarded to PM for consideration by President, who would then make final decision.
Over the years, the number of judges has increased, but this has not resulted in a decrease in the number of cases pending before the Supreme Court. Since 1950, arrears have continued to rise, despite periodic increases in judicial power.
Although the court's judicial strength was boosted to 34 judges in August 2019, the number of pending cases has surged to 71,411 as of August 1, 2022, up from a little over 55,000 in 2017.
There were 64,426 cases in 2020 and 69,855 in 2021 in the backlog.
There are presently 31 judges on the bench. In the next few months, four of the current judges, including Chief Justice Ramana, will step down.
His successor, Justice U.U. Lalit, will step down from the bench on November 8 after serving just three months.
According to the seniority rule, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud will become the 50th Chief Justice of India in November.
No secretariat or intelligence-gathering structure for collecting and checking the personal and professional backgrounds of prospective nominees, which results in an administrative burden when judges are appointed or transferred.
Nepotism and secrecy have been cited as reasons for the affair's failure to be open to the public.
Restrictions on the selection of judges from the High Court for Supreme Court seats, ignoring a number of highly qualified junior judges and advocates. No, secretariat or intelligence-gathering structure for collecting and checking the personal and professional backgrounds of prospective nominees, which results in an administrative burden when judges are appointed or transferred.