Delay in judges’ appointment affects principle of seniority, says collegium
NEW DELHI, MARCH 23 : Taking a strong exception to the Centre withholding or overlooking the names recommended for appointment as judges, the Supreme Court collegium on Wednesday said it is “a matter of grave concern” as it disturbs the seniority of candidates.
The collegium asked the government to elevate those recommended earlier without further delay, even as it recommended four more names for the Madras High Court in a resolution dated March 21.
The collegium, headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, recommended the elevation of district judges R Sakthivel, P Dhanabal, Chinnasamy Kumarappan and K Rajasekar to the Madras High Court.
The collegium said the elevation of Rajasekar, which was recommended on Wednesday, should only be notified after that of Neelakandan. “Otherwise, Rajasekar, who is a judicial officer and younger than Neelakandan, would rank senior to Neelakandan. Such a deviation in seniority would be unfair and against the settled convention,” the collegium’s resolution said.
Recalling that the elevation of advocates R John Sathyan and Ramaswamy Neelakandan to the Madras HC was reiterated on January 17, the collegium urged the Centre to do the needful for their appointment.
Earlier, the Centre had returned advocate Sathyan’s file as he had shared an article critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and another post regarding the suicide of a medical aspirant in 2017.
Referring to the Intelligence Bureau’s report that he enjoyed a good personal and professional image, the collegium said the posts made by Sathyan would not impinge on his suitability, character or integrity to be a high court judge.
“In this view, the Collegium is of the considered opinion that R. John Sathyan is fit and suitable for being appointed as a Judge of the Madras High Court. The Collegium, therefore, resolves to reiterate its recommendation dated February 16, 2022, for appointment of R. John Sathyan, advocate, as a Judge of the Madras High Court,” said the January 17 resolution.
The Collegium’s resolution on March 21 stated that the recommendation made by the High Court Collegium on August 10, 2022, for the appointment of the four judicial officers as judges of the Madras High Court has the concurrence of the chief minister and the governor of Tamil Nadu.
