Days after the Supreme Court’s Collegium system came under criticism from Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, Justice DY Chandrachud, ahead of his swearing in as the new Chief Justice of India, told The Indian Express that any criticism towards the Collegium system should be seen in “positive light,” adding that all efforts should be made to improve the system as “no institution in any constitutional democracy can lay claim to being perfect.”
On Friday, Rijiju once again targeted the “opaque” Collegium system, alleging that people who are known to judges are often elevated and appointed ahead of others who are actually fit for the position.
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Responding to Rijiju’s claims of the Collegium being “opaque,” Justice Chandrachud told IE that the privacy of the High Court judges “under consideration” should be kept intact despite the growing and “legitimate public interest in knowing how the judges are appointed.”
Justice Chandrachud felt that opening discussions involving the appointment of judges to the public might deter many people from accepting the posts as they would feel that their personal lives will be under public scrutiny, which Justice Chandrachud felt was not desirable for the institution, reported IE.
Justice Chandrachud was in favour of working in a way that takes into account several criticisms, stating that some criticisms may be misplaced while others encourage them to look within and work towards bettering the existing system, which will be done, reported IE.
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Justice Chandrachud further said that any change should be gradual in nature “so as to promote certainty and better outcomes for everybody.” Talking about increasing criticism of judges and their judgements in social media, Justice Chandrachud believed that the judges “need to readapt…re-engineer,” reported IE.