CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Tuesday directed the State to file a detailed report on whether the State Human Rights Commission chairperson was appointed following the due procedures. S Logeshwar, the petitioner, claimed that the chairperson can be selected only by a meeting of three prescribed persons - the Chief Minister, law minister and the leader of the opposition.
However, in the current appointment, the failure of the leader of opposition M K Stalin to attend the meeting makes the selection invalid. Arguing for the petitioner, senior advocate A Sirajudeen submitted that all the necessary procedure was not followed in the selection process of the SHRC chairman.
He also added that the appointment of any retired judge to any post should be done only after consulting the Chief Justice which is the basic requirement, however, in this case it was not done. During the hearing on Tuesday, the first bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy recording the submissions observed that the petitioner did not challenge the eligibility or suitability of the present chairman for the post. However, the court adjourning the plea by four weeks, ordered the State to file a detailed report on whether the due process was followed.