NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday decided that it would consider suggestions from the public on improving the Collegium system of judicial appointments and made it clear that the collegium could go ahead with appointment of judges for the higher judiciary.
“Whatever they want, they can do. If they do not want to proceed, let them not. Let us not delay the proceedings,” a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Justice J S Khehar said, while posting the matter for hearing on November 18 and 19. The SC had on October 16 quashed as unconstitutional the National Judicial Appointment Commission Act.
The court asked the Attorney General Mukul Rohtagi to issue a public notice inviting representations and suggestions from all quarters of the public and webhost on the website of the Law and Justice Ministry by 5 pm on November 13. It also accepted the view of Bar Council of India that it be allowed to hold a meeting with all state bar associations and advocates’ bodies from across the nation for compilation of various suggestions. The court made it clear that the hearing would be limited to those counsels who are short-listed and allowed time by a Committee comprising of Attorney General for India, Chairman of Bar Council of India and Senior advocate Fali S Nariman.
The court took on record the compilation of over 60 suggestions from various sources filed by Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand and senior advocate Arvind P Datar.
The suggestions were in four categories — transparency, need for eligibility criteria, establishment of a secretariat for the collegium and evolving a complaint redressal mechanism. The court, however, said there would be no drastic changes and everything would be within guidelines of the nine-judge 1998 judgment that laid down the framework for the collegium system.