SC denies judicial post to man for 'suppressing' criminal past

The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that a person lacking moral uprightness and truthfulness has "no right to become a judge," as it affirmed the Madhya Pradesh High Court's decision to reject the candidature of a man for the state judicial services over suppression of his criminal past.

- Utkarsh Anand

“Do you have the moral fabric to become a judge? Look at your conduct. You do not even have the sense of truthfulness to come clear before us and admit that you were prosecuted in two cases,” a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi told the counsel for Mukesh Kumar Chaudhri, affirming the high court's May judgment.

The bench also pointedly remarked on Chaudhari’s change of surname during the recruitment process. “As Mukesh Kumar Verma, you were involved in two cases. So, the next time you appeared in the judicial service exam, you became ‘Mukesh Kumar Chaudhri’... and in a blink, all your previous cases vanished,” it said.