New Delhi: The Supreme Court Collegium, led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, reiterated the top judicial appointment body’s earlier recommendation to elevate senior advocate Saurabh Kirpal as a judge of the Delhi High Court, praising him for his competence, integrity and intellect.
An openly gay advocate, Kirpal’s name was first cleared in 2017 and was approved by the Collegium in 2021. But the proposal was sent back by the government last November.
“His appointment will add value to the Bench of the Delhi High Court and provide inclusion and diversity. His conduct and behaviour have been above board,” the top court Collegium stated in the letter dated 18 January.
The Collegium also backed its recommendation for the appointment of advocate R. John Sathyan as a judge of the Madras High Court, noting that sharing an article critical of the prime minister and making a post about the suicide of a medical aspirant will not impinge on his “suitability, character, or integrity”.
“In this backdrop, the adverse comments of the IB extracted above in respect of posts made by him i.e. sharing an article published in ‘The Quint’ and another post regarding committing of suicide by a medical aspirant candidate in 2017 will not impinge on the suitability, character or integrity of Shri Sathyan,” read the resolution, dated 17 January.
The Collegium also reiterated its earlier recommendation to appoint advocate Somasekhar Sundaresan as a judge of the Bombay High Court.
“All citizens have the right to free speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. Expression of views by a candidate does not disentitle him to hold a constitutional office so long as the person proposed for judgeship is a person of competence, merit and integrity,” the letter dated, 18 January, stated.