Move to send back names of Harnaresh Singh Gill and Mohammed Nizamuddin unusual as Centre cites no adverse remarks against them.
New Delhi: The Modi government’s brush with the higher judiciary continues, with the Centre now returning the names of two advocates recommended by the Supreme Court collegium for elevation as high court judges.
Although the Centre has on several occasions sent back names for reconsideration, what makes this instance unprecedented is that it has cited nothing adverse against the two candidates — Harnaresh Singh Gill and Mohammed Nizamuddin.
Gill was recommended for appointment as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, while Nizamuddin’s name had been proposed for elevation to the Calcutta High Court.
“Yes, the names have come back. They will be placed before the collegium after taking orders from the chief justice of India. But, as far as I am aware, such a thing has never happened earlier. It is highly unusual and arbitrary,” said a senior Supreme Court functionary.
Gill and Nizamuddin were among four advocates – the other two are Basharat Ali Khan and Mohammad Mansoor – whose names were with the Centre since 2016, when the collegium had first recommended their elevation. In May, ThePrint reported that the Modi government had been sitting on their files without offering any explanation while others on their lists had been approved.
Almost a month ago, the government also returned the files of Khan and Mansoor, who were to be elevated to the Allahabad High Court. At that time, though, some complaints had been cited against the two. However, legal experts had found that decision also to be unprecedented as the collegium had found the complaints to be “frivolous”.
A long wait
Gill’s name was cleared by the collegium of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, along with nine others, for appointment as a judge of the high court in June 2016. Since there was nothing adverse against him, it was cleared by the Supreme Court collegium in April last year. But while the others on the list were either appointed or rejected, the Centre simply sat Gill’s name.
Nizamuddin was recommended for elevation to the Calcutta High Court in early 2016, along with several other names. Again, while the other candidates on the list were appointed to the bench, his name was inexplicably put on hold by the government.
History of run-ins with the judiciary
Since coming to power in May 2014, the Modi government has taken on the judiciary, especially the Supreme Court collegium, several times over appointments, the most high-profile example being that of Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice K.M. Joseph.
Justice Joseph’s name was forwarded by the Supreme Court to the government on 10 January this year but it rejected his candidature, calling it “inappropriate” and “not fair and justified to other more senior, suitable and deserving chief justices”. Many believe the government’s action is connected to Joseph’s March 2016 judgment, in which he overturned imposition of President’s Rule in Uttarakhand and reinstated the Congress government of Harish Rawat.
The Centre has also been sitting on the recommendations for appointment of chief justices in some high courts. While some appointments were cleared recently, the names cleared for the Delhi High Court and the Himachal Pradesh High Court are still lying with the government.
Justice delayed is justice denied. A nation which cannot deliver prompt and accurate justice to its citizens is a failed State.