Give constitutional status to judicial appointments panel: Parliamentary committee

NEW DELHI: Heeding to demands of jurists and opposition BJP, a parliamentary committee has recommended giving constitutional status to a proposed panel for appointment and transfer of judges to the higher judiciary so that its composition cannot be altered through an ordinary legislation.

The Standing Committee on Law and Personnel has also recommened that eligible members of the Bar should be given an opportunity to be considered for appointment as judges of the high courts through advertisements as is the practice in other countries like the UK.

The panel said besides the composition, the functions of the proposed Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) should be mentioned in the Constitution as a safeguard against future changes.

The report of the committee tabled in Parliament today has recommended that a separate state-level JAC be formed to appoint and transfer judges of the 24 high courts.

It said state-level commissions comprising the chief minister of the state concerned, the chief justice of the high court concerned and the Leader of the Opposition of the state Legislative Assembly will lessen burden of the main commission.

At present, the composition of the proposed panel is defined in the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2013 which was introduced along with a separate constitutional amendment bill in Rajya Sabha during the Monsoon Session.

The constitutional amendment bill says there will be a JAC but does not say it will be headed by the CJI or mentions the composition.

While the constitutional amendment bill - an enabling bill - was passed by the Upper House, the main bill - the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2013--was referred to the standing committee.