SC seeks details on procedure for appointing HC judges

The Supreme Court today directed the Centre to place before it the memorandum of procedure for appointment of permanent judges in High Courts as in the last nine years 351 such appointments were made without the approval of the collegium of apex court judges. A Bench headed by Justice Arijit Pasayat said a "serious question" was involved in the matter as not one but many such appointments had been made between January 1, 1999 to July 31, 2007. The Bench, also comprising Justice P Sathasivam, was hearing a petition filed by former law minister Shanti Bhushan questioning the appointment of Justice Ashok Kumar as a permanent judge of the Madras High Court despite an adverse report of the apex court collegium. Bhushan raised the issue of alleged lapses in confirmation of additional judges as permanent High Court judges without following the proper procedure. In response to the petition filed last year, the Centre in an affidavit said during January 1, 1999 to July 31, 2007, the collegium of the apex court was not consulted before appointment of 351 judges in various High Courts. Perusing the affidavit, the Bench said it was not about a single case of Justice Kumar and it wanted to know "what would have happened if the apex court collegium had refused to approve any such appointment". "We feel that the dispute is not only about Justice Kumar) as the affidavit shows that same practice has been followed in appointment of other judges also," the Bench said after noting that there has been no case where an additional judge had been made permanent in consultation with the apex court collegium.

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