Underlining that maintaining the judiciary?s independence was the executive?s ?sacred duty,? Union minister for law and justice M Veerappa Moily acknowledged on Friday that since taking over as law minister he had returned more cases?of appointments to the higher judiciary?to the Supreme Court collegium for ?reconsideration? than ?two to three? of his predecessors put together.
Speaking to The Indian Express Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta on NDTV?s Walk the Talk to be broadcast tomorrow, Moily said he had sent back many (appointment) proposals ?pointing out the lacunae?. He replied in the affirmative when asked if the collegium had accepted most of his recommendations and withheld these appointments.
Asked what the ?strike rate? was?the number of times the collegium had rejected the government?s feedback?Moily said that was a ?secret?.
To a question whether this was causing delay in filling vacancies, Moily said: ?We are now evolving a system by which I would like to see that six months from today, all the vacancies should be filled up and we are working out certain parameters, certain methodology by which, in consultation with the judiciary, we can do so.?
On the proposed law to make judiciary more accountable, Moily said as of now there is the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, which provides for only impeachment. ?In the last 62 years, not even a single judge has been punished under this Act. That means it is an ineffective Act. We have to add a lot of teeth to it, not only for extreme punishment. The judiciary on its own, the Supreme Court, decided that there have to be certain values to be maintained by judges… It is their own decision. But, they are not enforcing it. Now I have incorporated them in this (proposed Bill), where standards and accountability will be incorporated in it by a law which will become enforceable. Then the next question will be punishment. There I have provided for graded punishment,? he added. Once the Bill becomes a law, ?not even a single tainted advocate or judge? will become a High Court Judge, he said.
