The game, not worth candle!

The Supreme Court had on 16th October 2015 decided the case of SC Advocates on Record Association and others Vs. Union of India and other 7 cases.Thereafter according to schedule time suggestions were sought and thousands of suggestions were compiled by the government and submitted before the Court. Now the Court has passed a suitable order to make the Collegium system more effective. But Alas! In fact, it appears that the whole exercise appears to be futile and have fallen back on the same footings of the old system except that the process of recommendations will be to some extent being transparent. The order delivered on 16th December does not appear to have gone ahead of the old system of Collegium. Thus, the game was not worth a candle. Perhaps several Corers of rupees might have been spent by government and the litigants but did not give expected results. The reality is that independence of judiciary does not commence before the appointment of judges. Once a judge is appointed independence of judiciary commences and it is for judges to maintain the independence and not to succumb to any body's recommendation or not to fall prey to any one's pressure. Till now we have not heard that there are trees of honesty, integrity or uprightness which naturally grows in the bungalows of judges who are appointed according to this or that system. It is individual's culture, character and MORAL values that make a judge independent in character. It is, therefore, worth   consideration to examine and consider about a person who could be elevated to such position. The experience shows that it is just a game of push and pull to go up for one and to pull so that one may not go up.

The Supreme Court has asked the Union Government to prepare Memorandum of Procedure. Intern the procedure will be chalked out and then it will be examined and will start fault finding mission on such proposal.

There is a huge shortage of judges and work is held up for want of a proper number of judges. I would not hesitate to say that the quality of few present judges is also poor. It will be worth to considered that retired judges who have even disposed of a good number of   cases (may not be qualitative judgments) may be reappointed according to the need of the Supreme Court and High Courts. Let there be some work by them.  Hope the concerned authorities and judiciary will give heed to such suggestion.

P.V.Namjoshi.

Advocate.

108, Dashahara Maidan, 

Ujjain, M.P. 456010. 

pvnamjoshi@gmail.com