‘Not good for judiciary to close doors on criticism’ RSS spokesperson backs Modi government on college

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New Delhi: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the BJP’s ideological source, has delved into an ongoing controversy over the collegiate system of appointing judges, saying that ‘tantra’ (system) should not dominate the Lok (people)”. Loktantra is the Hindi of democracy.

Citing alleged quotes from senior leaders and former members of the judiciary against the college, the RSS said the judiciary should be open to criticism.

In a five-page op-ed and central article in RSS spokesperson Paanchajanya, published this week, the outfit equated arguments about the separation of powers and the checks and balances often forwarded in support of the collegiate system, to a story where a woman accused of murdering her husband asks the court for mercy because she is a widow. The center piece titled Me Lord ka, Me Lord dwara, Me Lord ke liye (From Milord, by Milord, for Milord), the RSS cited the political leanings of judges in the past and the supreme court allegedly backed down from the system during the ’emergency state. declared by Gandhi’s Indian government in the 1970s and upheld the suspension of people’s basic rights.

Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju has repeatedly criticized the college and even claimed that because of the system, judges appoint those they know and not necessarily those who deserve to be appointed. be named. The Supreme Court, for its part, suggested that the Union government may be withholding some appointments because it was not happy that the SC struck down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC).

Whereas in the collegiate system, the Center has no say except in providing inputs to the IB, in the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts, under the NJAC, the panel for appointments would have been made up of government appointees, in addition to judicial officers. The NJAC Act had been enacted in 2014 to replace the college system, but was struck down by the Supreme Court the following year.

The Paanchajanya editorial said: Recently, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court was seen rejecting the standard of judicial review, but at the same time he was seen in favor of the collegiate system. Is it a good thing to deny the system and explain the gap by the system and transparency? The judiciary must see if its criticism is unfounded or if it is well-founded. It is not good that justice closes the doors of criticism… Does Indian justice want to remain completely ignorant of the fact that at the bottom, at the level of the base, there is disenchantment with it?

Referring to the emergency of the 1970s, the publication in its central piece, authored by Paanchajanya’s office, wrote “On April 28, 1976, during the emergency, the Supreme Court had to decide whether the court can consider a motion for habeas corpus filed by a person challenging his own arrest. Many high courts had already accepted it. But the Supreme Court upheld the right of Indira Gandhi’s constitutional government to modify or suspend all basic rights during the state of emergency, going against the unanimous decision of all the High Courts. Four judges ruled in favor of Indira Gandhi’s government. The only judge to oppose it was Justice HR Khanna”.

Praising the heritage and tradition of the Indian judiciary, Paanchajanya’s editorial wrote, “India is not only one of the oldest democracies in the world, it is also the country of the oldest judiciary of the world. India is one of the few countries in the world where the court is called ‘Nyaya Palika’. Here, his role is to do justice and not just to pass judgment. This is the reason why in this country, with the concept of Panch Parmeshwar (a reference to a story by famous Hindi writer Premchand about the justice system and friendship), the judiciary is respected more than any other institution.

He added, however, that respect was something that had to be earned and was “earned by the people”.

“Respect is not a material thing, which can be bought, snatched or stolen… It is ironic that history in the future will surely record that in 21st century India, institutions who expected respect, failed to realize that the conditions are being created at the local level for disillusionment to replace respect. It is time. This can be changed and it should be done. Time can only warn,” said the editorial.

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who said what

The article draws on statements made by senior BJP officials and heads of state to argue against the collegiate system of appointing judges.

Quoting Rijiju, he said the collegiate system for appointing judges did not exist anywhere else in the world.

Addressing the RSS Sabarmati Samvad conference, held in Ahmedabad in October, Rijiju said: “As the country’s justice minister, I have seen that half the time and the spirit of judges is devoted to deciding who will be the next judge. The Brotherhood of Judges does not appoint judges anywhere in the world.

He had also alleged that the college system was “alien” to the Constitution.

“Anything that differs from the Constitution only because of a decision made by the courts or a few judges, how can you expect the decision to be supported by the country,” Rijiju asked.

The article also refers to Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s maiden speech to Rajya Sabha earlier this month, where he said: “The Supreme Court struck down the amendment (to introduce the NJAC) made to the Constitution, for which the Lok Sabha voted unanimously and it was not even challenged to the Rajya Sabha in 2015-16.

Does the Indian judiciary want to remain completely ignorant of the fact that there has been disenchantment with it at the grassroots level, the RSS spokesman asked.

The collegiate system is often justified on the grounds that the concept of separation of powers, that is to say the judiciary, the executive and the legislature, is an absolutely essential element. In fact, the separation of powers and the balance of powers have the same logic, or the only logic. And a very interesting argument. Maybe like the story in which a woman accused of murdering her husband asks for mercy from the court on the grounds that she is a widow after all,” he said.

“Lack of transparency, language of communication”

While the main purpose of Paanchajanya’s editorial and article is to argue against the collegiate system of appointing judges, it also makes other allegations against the judiciary.

The article began with how English is the language of the judiciary, especially in the Supreme Court, and even Hindi-speaking judges often abide by the rule.

Judges from non-Hindi speaking backgrounds may not understand Hindi. It is possible and it is understandable. But the same cannot be said for the entire Indian judicial system as an institution. Does India’s judiciary realize that in a survey by Transparency International in 2006, the police and judiciary were rated first in terms of corruption?, the articles said.

Paanchjanya’s article referred to an alleged report by the Hindustan Times, which allegedly said that around 50% of High Court judges and 33% of Supreme Court judges were linked to those deployed in the upper echelons of the judicial system. .

He also referenced alleged quotes from former judges.

Senior Attorney Dushyant Dave had said in 2018 that some of the top justices have been denied elevation to the Supreme Court for many years because no one liked them in college,” the RSS spokesperson claimed.

He also made reference to other former members of the judiciary.

Justice Pramod Kohli, former Chief Justice of the High Court of Sikkim, is quoted in the article as saying: In my view, the ‘college system’ for the appointment of judges in the courts is not working properly. There is a lack of transparency there. There are mutual differences between the members of the “college”, due to which ineligible candidates are nominated instead of deserving candidates. Apart from that, appointments are also delayed.

Another senior judge, retired judge PN Ravindran of the Kerala High Court, allegedly said, “The collegiate system was developed mainly by judicial decision on the argument that it would ensure the independence of the judiciary. Can we not say that independence is not only necessary for the judiciary? Shouldn’t teachers in our schools, colleges and universities be independent? Shouldn’t they be free from interference from any side when evaluating answer sheets? »

(Editing by Poulomi Banerjee)

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