Jethmalani to go ahead with judicial commission

Jethmalani to go ahead with judicial commission
SANJIV SINHA

NEW DELHI, DEC 17: Calling the judiciary's recent code of ethics ``inadequate,'' Union Law Minister Ram Jethmalani has rejected Chief Justice of India A S Anand's suggestion to delay the constitution of the National Judicial Commission (NJC).

Speaking to The Indian Express, Jethmalani said that he planned to introduce the NJC Bill during the current session of Parliament and said that the apex court should not have any misgivings since this was meant to make the system of appointment, transfer and removal of judges more transparent.

The modalities of the Bill have been mostly worked out and it will be put before the Cabinet soon, he said. At a function to mark the golden jubilee celebrations of the Supreme Court earlier this month, Chief Justice Anand had suggested that the present system of appointment of judges by a collegium (as delineated in a Supreme Court judgement) should be allowed to continue and that the NJC could wait.

The Law Minister said that the Bill would incorporate most of theproposals of the Committee of Judicial Accountability. ``The basic objective of the Bill is to create a mechanism wherein major interests in society are consulted in the appointment, transfer and removal of judges.''

The proposed commission is likely to comprise five to 10 members, representing the government, opposition, judiciary, bar and the academic world, with the judiciary being given predominance. The NJC will also draft a code of ethics and will have powers to remove judges on grounds of misconduct.