Justice Narasimha recuses from plea to finalise judges’ appointment MoP and bring Collegium decisions under RTI

New Delhi: Supreme Court Justice PS Narasimha on Monday recused himself from hearing a plea seeking the finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) governing the appointment of judges to the SC and High Courts, as well as bringing Collegium decisions within the ambit of the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

The matter was listed before a bench of justices Narasimha and Alok Aradhe. At the outset, Justice Narasimha said he would not be able to hear the case as he had appeared as Additional Solicitor General before the five-judge constitution bench in the proceedings concerning the National Judicial Appointments Commission.

The petition has been filed by NGO Lok Prahari, which has sought directions to the Chief Justice of India and the Union government to finalise the revised MoP, which has remained pending for nearly 11 years. The MoP lays down the procedure governing the appointment, elevation and transfer of judges to the higher judiciary.


In October 2015, a five-judge constitution bench struck down the NJAC Act as unconstitutional and directed the government to finalise the existing MoP in consultation with the CJI and the SC Collegium. The court had identified several aspects requiring attention, including eligibility criteria for judicial appointments, transparency in the selection process, a permanent secretariat and a mechanism to deal with complaints against prospective candidates.

The petitioner has also sought directions to make the minutes of meetings of the SC and HC Collegiums relating to judicial appointments accessible under the RTI Act.