Judges Accepting Govt Posts After Retirement a Concern

Chief Justice of India Bhushan R Gavai has sounded a strong note of caution against judges accepting government posts or contesting elections immediately after retirement, warning that such practices raise "significant ethical concerns" and risk eroding public confidence in the judiciary's independence.

- Utkarsh Anand

NEW DELHI:

He was addressing a high-powered roundtable on judicial independence at the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom on Tuesday.

"A judge contesting an election for a political office can lead to doubts regarding the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, as it may be seen as a conflict of interest or as an attempt to gain favour with the government," he added.

According to the CJI: "The timing and nature of such post-retirement engagements," he added, "could undermine the public's trust in the judiciary's integrity, as it could create a perception that judicial decisions were influenced by the prospect of future government appointments or political involvement."

CJI Gavai emphasised that he and many of his colleagues had "publicly pledged not to accept any post-retirement roles or positions from the government."

His remarks come amid long-standing debate over whether judges should be eligible for post-retirement positions — a concern deepened in recent years by examples of Supreme Court and high court judges taking up roles offered by the executive soon after demitting office.

Justice SA Nazeer, for instance, retired as a Supreme Court judge in January 2023. He was appointed as the governor of Andhra Pradesh, within 40 days of his retirement.

Notably, Justice Nazeer was part of the five-judge bench that decided the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi case in November 2019, handing over the Ayodhya land to the Hindu party. That bench was presided by then chief justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi.