One of the resolutions uploaded on the apex court website said a vacancy in the office of the chief justice of the Uttarakhand high court has arisen consequent upon retirement of Justice Vipin Sanghi on October 26, 2023.
The Delhi Fire Services Chief Atul Garg has stated that no cash was found during firefighting operations at the residence of Delhi High Court Justice Yashwant Varma. The fire occurred on March 14 and was contained within a storeroom. The Supreme Court collegium has initiated an inquiry against Varma following allegations of a large stash of cash being discovered at his residence during the fire.
It said the issues on which opinions have been attributed to him are in the public domain and have been extensively deliberated upon in the media.
The government had declined to appoint Justice Joseph's to the top court and asked it to reconsider his name.
The Supreme Court collegium headed by Chief Justice of India S A Bobde is holding its scheduled meeting on Thursday to discuss possible candidates for the appointment of judges in higher judiciary, sources familiar with the development said.
Former Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar has argued for replacing the existing collegium system for judicial appointments, asserting that public sentiment leans toward an alternative mechanism, potentially resembling the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC). He believes that the government has the authority to propose a revised constitutional amendment for judicial appointments that would withstand judicial scrutiny. Kumar also urged the Supreme Court to establish a robust internal process to address concerns within the judiciary, including allegations against judges.
The Supreme Court collegium has decided to drop its recommendation for elevating Karnataka Chief Justice P D Dinakaran, facing charges of land grabbing, to the apex court, bringing to end months of controversy over the move. The collegium led by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and including Justice S H Kapadia, Tarun Chatterjee, Altamas Kabir and R V Raveendran, met on Thursday evening and decided to take back the recommendation for his elevation.
The Supreme Court will hear a plea on Friday seeking a direction to Delhi Police to lodge an FIR over the alleged discovery of semi-burnt stash of cash from the official residence of High Court judge Yashwant Varma. The plea was filed by lawyer Mathews J Nedumpara and three others on Sunday. It challenges the 1991 judgement in the K Veeraswami case, in which the top court ruled that no criminal proceedings could be initiated against a judge of the high court or the top court without the prior nod of the Chief Justice of India. The alleged cash discovery happened following a fire at Varma's Lutyens Delhi residence on March 14, prompting the fire officers to rush to the spot. A Supreme Court-appointed in-house committee visited the residence of Justice Varma on Tuesday to commence its inquiry in the matter. Justice Varma denounced any insinuation and said no cash was ever placed in the storeroom either by him or any of his family members.
With the appointment of the five judges, the total number of judges in the apex court has risen to 32, two short of the full strength.
The Supreme Court collegium headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud has rejected a request made by Justice V M Velumani to retain her as a Madras high court judge.
The Supreme Court collegium headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud has recommended the names of three advocates for appointment as judges of the Bombay high court.
Legal experts have lauded Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna's decision to make public crucial documents related to a controversy surrounding the alleged discovery of cash from Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma's residence. They also welcomed the formation of an in-house committee to further investigate the matter. While some expressed concerns about the incident's impact on the judiciary's image, others emphasized the need for transparency and a fair inquiry. The Supreme Court released the inquiry report by Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya, which included photos and videos of the alleged cash discovery. Justice Varma has denied the allegations, calling them a "conspiracy to frame and malign him."
The collegium system has shut the doors of judgeship in the higher judiciary on Dalits, OBCs and even the poor among the upper castes
The decision was taken on October 3.
Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan on Monday said the Supreme Court collegium made a mistake in recommending the name of Karnataka High Court Chief Justice P D Dinakaran for appointment to the apex court and maintained that any judge found to have trespassed any land is not fit to be elevated.
The Supreme Court collegium headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud on Thursday recommended the transfer of seven high court judges to different high courts in the country.
Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday claimed that a few retired judges and some activists who are 'part of the anti-India gang' are trying to make the Indian judiciary play the role of the opposition party.
While the Supreme Court collegium has recently approved the proposal for Kirpal's elevation to the Delhi high court bench which was a matter of controversy due to his sexual orientation, the elevation would be subject to Centre's approval.
The top court, which was hearing a matter relating to an alleged delay by the Centre in clearing the names recommended by the collegium for appointment as judges to constitutional courts, has posted the matter for further hearing on February 3.
The Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana has recommended to the Centre 15 names of judicial officers and advocates for appointment as judges in the high courts of Delhi, Patna, and Andhra Pradesh.
Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud has agreed to meet the Gujarat High Court Advocates' Association on November 21 in view of the ongoing protest by lawyers opposing the Supreme Court collegium's recommendation to transfer Justice Nikhil S Kariel to Patna high court.
The government has returned twice to the Supreme Court collegium a recommendation made by it.
Law Minister Kiren Rijiju tweeted to announce the appointment of Justice Pankaj Mithal, Chief Justice, Rajasthan High Court; Justice Sanjay Karol, Chief Justice, Patna High Court; Justice P V Sanjay Kumar, Chief Justice, Manipur High Court; Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah of Patna High Court; and Justice Manoj Misra of Allahabad High Court as apex court judges.
A video and inquiry report have raised questions about the Delhi Fire Services' claim that no cash was found at the official residence of Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma during a fire incident on March 14. The video, which has gone viral on social media, shows fire fighters dousing flames on articles that appear to include half-burnt Indian currency notes. The Delhi High Court Chief Justice has initiated an in-house inquiry against Justice Varma and the Supreme Court has proposed his transfer to the Allahabad High Court.
The court was hearing two pleas including one alleging delay by the Centre in clearing the names recommended by the collegium for appointment and transfer of judges.
"When the matter reaches the SC collegium, there is a fully perfect situation, whether the name be accepted or not to be accepted. It's not as if it is a whimsical exercise taken by someone. It's a fool proof arrangement," he said.
A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia had heard the matter on November 20 and posted it for further hearing on Tuesday.
'We have already prejudged the issue. And now things have reached a point where it is very difficult for a person to say that he could be innocent.'
A plea in the Supreme Court of India seeks a direction to Delhi Police to lodge an FIR over the alleged discovery of semi-burnt stash of cash from the official residence of Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma. The plea challenges a 1991 judgement that prohibits criminal proceedings against judges without prior consent from the Chief Justice of India, arguing it violates the principle of equality before the law. It also seeks to declare the collegium's 3-member committee investigating the incident as having no jurisdiction and calls for action against corruption within the judiciary.
The resolution of the May 16 collegium meeting stated that there was need for deliberation on bringing the judges from the high courts, which are not represented, to the Supreme Court.
While the Supreme Court is seized of the matter related to the plea to restrain lawyer Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri from taking oath as a judge of the Madras high court, a senior advocate, who was among those who opposed her elevation said on Tuesday that they are waiting for the outcome of the proceedings in the apex court.
The government had on April 26 declined to accept the recommendation of the collegium and asked it to reconsider his name.
A three-judge panel appointed by the Supreme Court of India has submitted its inquiry report to the Chief Justice of India on the cash discovery allegations against Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma. The panel, comprising Justice Sheel Nagu, Justice G S Sandhawalia, and Justice Anu Sivaraman, finalized its report on May 3. The report was submitted to the CJI on May 4 for further actions. The controversy was raised following a news report about the cash discovery row after a fire at Justice Varma's residence in Delhi on March 14. The report reportedly contains the findings of the panel into the alleged cash discovery row. Justice Varma has denounced any insinuation and said no cash was ever placed in the storeroom either by him or any of his family members.
The Supreme Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the registration of an FIR over the alleged discovery of burnt wads of cash at the official residence of Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma. The court said an in-house inquiry was underway and there would be several options open to the Chief Justice of India after the probe's conclusion.
Refuting Justice Chelameswar's charge, the functionaries, who requested anonymity, said the law ministry had twice returned the file relating to the elevation of principal district judge P K Bhat because the collegium did not comply with the Vishakha guidelines.
After an hour-long deliberation, the five-member collegium unanimously decided that Justice Joseph's name should be accompanied with the recommendation of names of other Chief Justices of high courts for elevation as judges of the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court Monday said the appointment of the chief justice of Manipur high court has finally received the Centre's attention and will be notified "shortly", over three months after the apex court collegium had recommended Delhi high court judge Siddharth Mridul for the post.
'The (Collegium system of appointing judges) is absolutely whimsical.'
The Supreme Court collegium headed by CJI N V Ramana has learnt to have recommended eight names of judges, including acting chief justice of Calcutta High Court Justice Rajesh Bindal, for their elevation as chief justices of different high courts.
'Justice K M Joseph is the senior-most chief justice of all the high courts in India.' 'The Supreme Court Collegium has recommended Justice Joseph's name to be elevated as a judge of the Supreme Court.' 'Despite these facts, the Government of India is not taking appropriate, speedy action, to forward the Supreme Court Collegium's recommendation to the President for Justice Joseph's appointment.'
