Regrettably, law commissions, both at the Centre and in the states have not been a success; even the prestigious Law Commission of India, once headed by a retired chief justice of the calibre of P.B. Gajendragadkar, no longer attracts the likes of recently retired CJIs. For one thing, the chairman of the Law Commission of India has no statutory status; the body is not even autonomous; it is a mere appendage of the law ministry. And its recommendations are not binding on governments. The Law Commission does not even have the authority to publish and disseminate its otherwise useful reports before they are laid in Parliament; the latter being a dilatory exercise, that takes months, sometimes years, and so the efficacy of such reports is greatly impaired.

B.P. Jeevan Reddy, on his retirement as a judge of the Supreme Court (also at 65) was appointed chairman of the Law Commission of India. He worked hard and handed over to the government of the day, in February 1999, a report on corruption and a completely drafted bill: the Corrupt Public Servants (Forfeiture of Property) Bill which made effective and stringent provisions for forfeiture of properties acquired by corrupt or illegal means by holders of public office, including offices and posts in public sector corporations. This important measure, characterised by the Supreme Court as “an absolute necessity if the canker of corruption is not to prove the death knell of this nation”, has not seen the light of day. It languishes on the table of some official in the law ministry. Seven years have passed, neither the NDA nor UPA has thought it fit to even introduce this bill in Parliament! Such is the status of reports and recommendations of the Law Commission of India!

... contd.