NEW DELHI: Supreme Court will now work with the full strength of 34 judges as the Centre on Friday notified the appointment of Justices Rajesh Bindal and Aravind Kumar as Supreme Court judges.
Taking to Twitter, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said, “As per the provisions under the Constitution of India, the Hon'ble President of India has appointed the following Chief Justices of High Courts as Judges of the Supreme Court. My best to them.
The Supreme Court collegium on January 31 in yet another detailed resolution had recommended their names. In an unprecedented move, the four-page collegium resolution also stated that while Justice Bindal’s name was approved unanimously by the six-member collegium, Justice Kumar’s name was objected to by SC judge, Justice KM Joseph.
Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said that the recommendation that has been received from the Supreme Court collegium (SCC) for the elevation of Justices Rajesh Bindal (currently CJ of Allahabad HC) and Aravind Kumar (currently CJ of Gujarat HC) as Supreme Court judges is “at various stages of processing.”
Elaborating on the reasons for their elevation, the resolution further stated that the collegium while recommending Justice Bindal’s name considered an inadequate representation of judges from Punjab and Haryana HC on the SC bench.
“Mr Justice Bindal stands at Sl. No.02 in the combined All-India-seniority of High Court Judges. He is the seniormost Judge hailing from the Punjab and Haryana High Court. While recommending his name, the Collegium has taken into consideration the fact that the Punjab and Haryana High Court which is one of the largest High Courts with a sanctioned strength of eighty-five judges are not adequately represented on the Bench of the Supreme Court. The High Court of Punjab and Haryana is a common High Court for two States,” the resolution stated.
While considering Justice Kumar’s elevation, the collegium resolution said, “While recommending his name, the Collegium is conscious of the fact that in the seniority of Judges hailing from the Karnataka High Court, Mr Justice Aravind Kumar stands at Sl. No.02 and that at present, the Bench of the Supreme Court is represented by two Judges from the Karnataka High Court.”
Further, the bench also focused on the seniority of CJs and senior puisne judges in the respective parent HCs & overall seniority of HC judges, their merit, performance and integrity and also the need for ensuring diversity and inclusion in SC.