The Supreme Court's supremacy

It should not be challenged, yet judges should not select judges

- 

In recent weeks, media reports have carried statements made by the vice president and the law minister that the selection procedure for Supreme Court judges needs to be reviewed. In 2014, the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act was approved overwhelmingly by Parliament, under which the Chief Justice of India (CJI), the next two senior judges of the Supreme Court, the Union law minister and two other eminent persons would be members of the NJAC. In 2015, the Supreme Court struck down the NJAC Act as it was deemed to have violated the basic structure of the Constitution. Consequently, a collegium, which consists of the Supreme Court and the four senior-most judges, has continued to select judges for the Supreme Court and high courts.

About half a century ago, in April 1976, Supreme Court judges subordinated their sense of justice to favour the central government in the infamous habeas corpus case. The details are at, https://main.sci.gov.in /jonew/judis. And, during 1975-77, the CJI transferred inconvenient high court judges at the government's bidding. Since the mid-1970s, Indian governments have often pushed for the selection of favoured judges to high courts or Supreme Court positions. On a related note, in 2002 the Justice M N Venkatachaliah Commission recommended that a National Judicial Commission (NJC) should be set up, which would include the CJI, two senior-most Supreme Court judges, the Union law minister and one eminent person suggested by the CJI. This Commission recommended that the proposed NJC would select Supreme Court judges.