Disclosure of Complaints Against Judges

Recently, while deciding an RTI Appeal by the Information Commissioner, Department of Justice was directed to provide the applicant copies of forwarding letters by which complaints received by it (Department) were sent to the Supreme Court and High Courts. Giving this information in written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha recently, Shri Salman Khurshid, Minister of Law & Justice, said that accordingly, copies of forwarding letters of the last one year were provided to the RTI applicant in compliance. They have 98 representations/ complaints cases. The Minister said that as per the ‘in-house mechanism’ of the higher judiciary, the Chief Justice of India (CJI) is competent to receive complaints against the conduct of the Judges of the Supreme Court and the Chief Justices of the High Courts. Similarly, the Chief Justices of the High Courts (CJHs) are competent to receive complaints against the conduct of the Judges of their courts. But, the Government also does receive a variety of complaints against serving judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts from various quarters. These complaints which are often addressed to the CJI/ CJHs, are forwarded as such to the Supreme Court or the concerned High Court for appropriate action, Shri Khurshid informed the House.