NEW DELHI: In the midst of the controversy surrounding HC bar associations opposing the proposed transfer of three HC judges and lawyers delegation meeting the CJI to put forth their grievances, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday said that recurring instances of this kind with regards to every decision taken by the “collegium” or which is being supported by the government, will change the “whole dimension.”He made these remarks at the felicitation function organised by the Bar Council of India for CJI DY Chandrachud.
Referring to CJI agreeing to meet the delegation of Gujarat HC Advocate’s Association on Monday to hear lawyers’ grievance regarding the proposed transfer of Justice Kariel, Rijiju said, “Sometimes some of the HCs have got unique problems and there are issues which aren’t easy to understand. You have to be there with them. It’s not easy to understand any issue just like that.
“When there are issues.. yesterday, I heard that some lawyers want to meet CJI for a transfer case. Now the issue may be in isolation, it may be one of the issues. But if it becomes recurring instances for every decision taken by Collegium or which is being supported by the government, then where will it lead to? The whole dimension will change. It is not just judiciary alone.”
Rijiju also said, “I heard that some lawyers are going on strike for some issues. In these days to come, these are some of the things which we may see frequently and we think & decide whether these things are good for the institution or not. Everybody talks about strengthening the institution, if we don’t respect the institution it may amount to disrespecting ourselves. When there are things which are becoming too loud in terms of putting forward your demand, then there are risks of taking a different turn.”