Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam on Saturday urged the judiciary to ensure easy access of the common people to court as well as "early finality of dispensation of justice" to uphold its credibility.
The Supreme Court on Monday regained its full strength of 34 judges as chief justice of Gauhati high court Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Gujarat high court judge Justice Jamshed B Pardiwala took oath as apex court judges.
The agency has moved with its charge sheet against Shukla after getting a go ahead from the government to prosecute the retired judge, they said.
It is for the first time in the history of the apex court that nine judges took oath of office at one go.
The Supreme Court is all set to regain its full strength of 34 judges with the apex court collegium headed by CJI N V Ramana recommending names of the Chief Justice of Gauhati high court Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Gujarat high court judge Justice Jamshed B Pardiwala for elevation to the apex court, sources said.
Speculation over Justice Gogoi's appointment as the next CJI arose after the court's four most senior judges, including Justice Gogoi, called a press conference in January and criticised Justice Misra on various issues.
It is significant that the matter has not been listed before the judges who are number two to five in the seniority.
The move also comes against the backdrop of rising cases in the top court which stand at nearly 60,000.
Former Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir says he's being wrongly indicted by his successor CJI P Sathasivam and demands an apology. In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, the former CJI also denies any leak of the National Eligibilty cum Entrance Test judgment.
Senior IPS officers Javeed Ahmed, Rajni Kant Misra, S S Deswal and Shivanand Jha are said to be among the front-runners for the coveted post.
In an unprecedented decision, the Supreme Court Collegium has recommended the names of three women judges for appointment in the apex court which, if cleared, would give the country its first woman Chief Justice of India (CJI) in the form of Justice B V Nagarathna on February 10, 2027.
The Supreme Court said on Wednesday it will examine whether the immunity granted to lawmakers from prosecution for taking bribe to make a speech or vote in Parliament and state legislatures extends to them even if criminality is attached to their actions, as it began reconsideration of its 1998 judgement in the JMM bribery scandal that rocked the country 25 years ago.
In an unusual coincidence, the two judges of a Supreme Court bench hearing a plea against the survey of the Gyanvapi-Shringar Gauri complex in Varanasi have had an association with a similar kind of dispute relating to the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri masjid issue as well.
The SC said Rao has prima facie committed contempt of court by transferring Sharma without taking court's consent.
With the elevation of these four new judges, the strength has risen from 24 to 28.
Justices Madan B Lokur, Kurien Joseph, Ranjan Gogoi and Jasti Chelameswar addressed the press conference on the lawns of Justice Chelameswar's official residence.
He said citizens from far flung areas of the country come to the apex court and the bench headed by the CJI was dismissing their petitions without hearing them at the admission stage.
Most politicians and even non-politicians have been honoured because of what they were purported to be electorally worth for the ruling party of their time, argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
Justice J Chelameswar, who courted controversy by virtually revolting against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, also said that impeachment cannot be an answer to every problem and there was need to correct the system.
The judges -- Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, CJI-designate Sharad Arvind Bobde and justices Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S Abdul Nazeer -- delivered the verdict in the century-old dispute.
'These things are not forgotten, it will haunt the Supreme Court for a long time.'
As the impasse over the crisis after the virtual revolt by the four judges against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra last Friday continued, sources said Justice Chelameswar had a brief meeting with another dissenting judge Justice Ranjan Gogoi at his residence.
The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended their names to the government last month.
Attorney General K K Venugopal on Tuesday said the crisis in the Supreme Court seems to be unresolved and hoped it will be "fully settled" in a couple of days, remarks that come a day after he stated that everything was settled in the higher judiciary.
The new judges of the top court include Justice B V Nagarathna, who will be in line to be the first woman Chief Justice of India (CJI) in September 2027, Justice Bela M Trivedi, Justice Hima Kohli, Justice C T Ravikumar, Justice M M Sundresh, and senior advocate and former Additional Solicitor General P S Narasimha.
'The Vision of Justice was indeed attained in the courtroom.' 'Not once, but multiple times.' 'But has it translated into reality?' 'Has the success of these sterling verdicts reached the ground?' asks Justice Ranjan Gogoi, the next Chief Justice of India.
Reversing the burden of evidence means that the principle of innocent until proven guilty does not apply. It is exactly the opposite: Guilty as charged, until you can convince the judges of the contrary, points out Shekhar Gupta.
A controversy broke out on Sunday over Justice Sikri getting a government offer last year for a post-retirement assignment at the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT), three days after his vote, as a representative of CJI Ranjan Gogoi on the panel, helped decide the removal of Verma as CBI director.
The attorney general admitted that there is no sovereign guarantee, but asserted that there is a letter of comfort by France which would be as good as a governmental guarantee.
The four judges -- Justices J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan B Lokur and Kurian Joseph -- have taken up their respective business on the first working day of the top court after the January 12 press conference.
The government had on April 26 declined to accept the recommendation of the collegium and asked it to reconsider his name.
Rajeev Dhavan had created a flutter in the packed courtroom on Wednesday when he tore the pictorial map provided by senior lawyer Vikas Singh, representing AIHM.
The CJI has also kept with himself matters concerning arbitration, habeas corpus, criminal cases, contempt of court and ordinary civil matters.
The judges on the bench are CJI S A Bobde, Justices R Banumathi, Ashok Bhushan, L Nageswara Rao, M M Shantanagoudar, S A Nazeer, R Subhash Reddy, B R Gavai and Surya Kant.
Kumar's lawyer mentioned the matter for urgent listing before a vacation bench comprising Justices Indira Banerjee and Sanjiv Khanna.
JUstice Kurian Joseph favoured setting up of an administrative committee to assist the office of Chief Justice of India in effectively handling the affairs of the top court.
Justice Chelameswar said the reasons were too obvious and he would not like to deal with the matter.
The apex court said that he won't be allowed to take any major policy decision till the high-powered committee considers the issue of "divestment of power and authority".
Justice S A Bobde will not be available on January 29.
The CBI has alleged that Justice Shukla received illegal gratification from Justice (Retd) Quddusi and B P Yadav, chairman of Prasad Education Trust which runs a medical college in Lucknow, for getting a favourable order to prevent delisting from counselling sessions for admitting students in 2017.
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