Law minister criticized the Constitution as a “religious document” for everyone, especially the government, in a fresh attack. It is impossible to assume that the entire country supports something that is different from the constitution just because the court and some judges have decided.
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The collegium system, the process adopted for the appointment of judges in the country’s judiciary, is in a lot of discussion these days. Despite calls for amendments from the central government, the Supreme Court defends it continuously. Today, the Law Minister has launched yet another scathing attack on the collegium system.
At an event, he said the collegium system is incompatible with the Indian Constitution. In this statement, he also said that the government honors this process since no one can adopt the judiciary according to the democratic system of the country. In addition, he stated that the Supreme Court, at its discretion, formed the collegium.
A fresh attack was launched by the law minister, who said the Indian Constitution should be considered a religious document by everyone, especially the government. It is not possible to assume that the entire country supports something that is different from the constitution just because some judges and the court have decided on it. Rijiju asked, what provision has prescribed the collegium system? Upon receiving the recommendation from the collegium of the Supreme Court or the High Court, the government must conduct due diligence.
He responded to a question regarding the government’s delay in acting on the recommendations of the Supreme Collegium despite the growing number of cases pending. By suppressing the files, he said the government is not sitting on them. If you don’t want to send files to the government, make your own appointment and keep the show going. It doesn’t work that way. Collaboration between the executive and judiciary is essential.
Judges used to be appointed by governments before 1991
He said that he would not get into the debate about what this system should look like until a better system is established. The government in 1991 respected the collegium system very much until a better one was established. A better platform or a better position is required for this.
NJAC bill passes unanimously in Parliament, but is struck down by the Supreme Court
According to Rijiju, Parliament passed the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act almost unanimously to reverse the collegium system. In spite of these loopholes in the collegium system, the Supreme Court canceled the law. People have raised concerns that the system is not transparent. There is also no accountability in the system.
There is no right or wrong judge, but there is always a right decision
As Rijiju said, not every judge is right, but every judicial decision is correct since it is a judicial decision. In a democratic process, no one can disrespect the judiciary.
Through his judgment, the judge should speak
During this, he also reacted to the ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court regarding the appointment of Election Commissioners. On the Supreme Court’s remark, he said people would also ask how the collegium chose a particular individual as a judge, as his comments could lead to a difficult situation. Some of the judge’s comments make headlines, but the reported comments do not become part of the judgment, he said.
The Executive and Judiciary are like brothers: Law Minister Rijiju
A central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has never weakened the authority of the judiciary, said the Union Law and Justice Minister. They should not fight with each other. Her freedom will always be preserved and enhanced by the government led by Modi.
I have raised questions in the past
Kiren Rijiju, the Union Law and Justice Minister, had previously raised concerns about the country’s judiciary’s collegium. He had recently said that to expedite judicial appointments, it is necessary to reconsider the present collegium system in Udaipur, Rajasthan.