Over 2K advocates demand urgent appointment of judges

Calling for a systemic overhaul in judicial appointments, more than 2,000 advocates have backed a requisition seeking the immediate filling of approximately 283 vacant high court judges' posts, including 35 (now 26 after the oath of 10 judges on August 4) in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. It warns that judicial delays, institutional favoritism and "inbreeding" are threatening the credibility and independence of the higher judiciary.

Pointing to over 62 lakh cases pending before high courts across India, the signatories have asserted that the backlog could be wiped out in about four years, provided the vacancies were filled by “honest, hard-working and dedicated” judges capable of deciding 25 cases a day, with 240 working days annually. The four-page requisition warned against the "judge-son/relative nexus" and called for a complete ban on "inbreeding" in judicial appointments, recommending that judges should not be elevated from the same Bar to the same high court to prevent conflicts of interest arising out of past professional ties. It advocated a transparent and transferable judicial system, akin to the Indian Administrative and Police Services, where officers cannot serve in their home districts.

The document was initiated by senior advocate Tahar Singh, who, along with advocate Sarbjeet Singh, has collected over 2,000 signatures from members of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar. It asserted that more than 100 eligible and experienced advocates were willing to take an oath and file affidavits for out-of-state appointments, underscoring that merit-based selections could be made without delay.

It also demanded the implementation of a five-year transfer policy for HC judges and retrospective investigations into the accumulation of disproportionate assets, even post-retirement. Citing recent scandals involving Justice Yashwant Verma, Justice Narayan Shukla and the cash-for-bail racket at Rouse Avenue Court, the requisition alleged that corruption in the judiciary was at an “all-time high” and urgently needed to be stemmed to restore public trust.

Raising concerns over the opaque functioning of the collegium system, the requisition said its members must recuse themselves if any of their relatives were practising in the same high court.

Additional proposals include raising the minimum age for elevation to the high court to 50 years and the designation of senior advocates to 45 years to ensure adequate maturity and detachment; elevation of only those “known for their honesty and unbiased conduct”, particularly by the collegium of the Punjab and Haryana High Court; and establishment of clear guidelines for collegium selections.

The requisition also praised retired Supreme Court judges, including Justice Kurien Joseph, Justice Chelameswar, Justice Madan B Lokur, Justice Sanjeev Khanna, Justice BR Gavai and Justice Abhay S Oka for declining post-retirement government appointments. It called upon all sitting judges to follow their example and thus uphold the independence of the judiciary.

The requisition ends with an appeal to the Chief Justice of India and other judges of the apex court to take moral and institutional responsibility for implementing these reforms, noting that all suggestions fell squarely within their jurisdiction. “When the history of India’s judicial system will be read, the names of you and your colleagues will be remembered,” it reads, drawing a parallel with former CJI MN Venkatachaliah, who introduced the transfer policy in 1993.