NEW DELHI: Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday underscored the primacy of the legislature in law-making to reassert his position to keep the domains of Parliament and judiciary independent in the matters of judicial appointments.
“Primacy of mandate of the people, it is the will of the people that has to prevail, which is reflected through their representatives in a legitimized platform, and this according to me is inviolable,” said Dhankhar. The Vice-President was speaking at the Dr Rajendra Prasad Memorial Lecture in Delhi.
The remarks by Dhankhar, who is also the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, come at a time when divergent opinions have been expressed over the appointment of judges to the higher judiciary. Many ministers have said that the collegium system of appointments to the higher judiciary needs to be reconsidered.
CJI DY Chandrachud has maintained that the object of the collegium system was to maintain independence and that could be done by insulating it from outside influences. Dhankhar said: “I would make a reference to the National Judicial Appointments Commission. There was unanimity in Parliament, the Lok Sabha voted for it with no abstention, same with Rajya Sabha with one abstention.
As constitutionally required, 16 state legislatures endorsed it. The President of the country invoking its constitutional authority under Article 111 of the Constitution signed it and it took the shape of constitutional prescription. I, as the Chairman of Rajya Sabha, wonder what happened to it, no one reverted to us. I am sure institutes like you, the intelligentsia of the country, would base your attention on this.”
He also spoke on the frequent disruption in parliamentary proceedings. “It is imperative that legislators distinguish between their legislative obligations and party compulsions,” he said. “Parliament is maintained by the public exchequer at a huge cost, and it doesn’t function day after day, it is very painful,” he said.