NEW DELHI: As the Union government is set to move an impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma, Rajya Sabha MP and senior lawyer Kapil Sibal on Tuesday alleged that the government’s motive is to dismantle the Collegium system and reintroduce the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) to control the appointment of judges.
Sibal hit out at the government’s decision to act against a HC judge without due process. “There was no inquiry. Unfortunately, the political class is being dragged into this,” he added.
The decision smacks of government’s broader plan to strip the judiciary of its autonomy, he said. “The political class must realize the game plan is to take away the power to appoint judges from the Collegium and hand it over to the NJAC. That is the entire purpose of this exercise,” Sibal said.
In 2015, the Supreme Court struck down the NJAC, which replaces the Collegium system, deeming it unconstitutional.
Terming Justice Varma as one of the finest judges, Sibal said that there s no whiff of wrongdoing against him.
“The government’s intention is to dismantle the Collegium system and take control of judicial appointments. Justice Varma is one of the finest judges I have ever appeared before. You ask any lawyer in the High Court or the Supreme Court — there is not a whiff of wrongdoing against him.”
Sibal also accused the government of adopting a selective approach in its treatment of cases involving Justice Varma and Justice Shekhar Yadav.
Opposition MPs have submitted a notice in the Rajya Sabha seeking an impeachment motion against Justice Yadav for allegedly making “communal” remarks last year.