Fali Nariman to challenge Judicial Appointments Bill in Supreme Court

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, August 14, 2014:  In an exclusive interview to Headlines Today, top jurist and leading constitutional expert Fali Nariman opposed the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill in its present form stating that it would be completely unacceptable to him.

Nariman also said that he will challenge the Bill in the Supreme Court.

Nariman maintained that the Supreme Court has the power to strike down the Bill even if it passes the Rajya Sabha test.

On Wednesday, the Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha. Rajya Sabha is expected to clear the Bill on Thursday before the present session comes to an end.

The Bill seeks to scrap the collegium system of appointing judges and in its place set up a commission for the same.

The Bill proposes that the Chief Justice of India will head a six-member National Judicial Appointments Commission, other members of which would be the law minister, two senior Supreme Court judges and two eminent people.

A collegium comprising the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India and the leader of the single largest party in the Lok Sabha will select the two eminent people.

One eminent person will be nominated from among the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, OBCs, minorities or women.

Earlier, Chief Justice R.M. Lodha had deplored the criticism of the collegium system of appointment of judges, saying a misleading campaign was on to defame the judiciary which would shake people’s confidence in democracy.

"There is a misleading campaign going across to defame the judiciary and repeated attempts have been made to spread incorrect information," a bench headed by Chief Justice Lodha observed.

Courtesy:India Today