THE judicial appointments process in India has recently come in for some scathing criticism from Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju and others in government. The gov ernment thinks the Indian Supreme Court's collegium system is opaque and not fair. The allegations seem to overlook the obvious fact that the government itself has remained opaque on its reservations, and when the top court makes public observations on candidates as made by government investigative agencies, all hell breaks loose.
The issue is also about the separation of powers that the makers of the Constitution had so carefully arranged, so that the executive cannot exert undue influence on the judicial system. And then, there is the issue of the basic structure of the Constitution.
In the end, possibly, the Constitution itself might be up for partisan scrutiny, leaving pretty much nothing sacred, nothing autonomous, nothing beyond the whims of an elected government.
POSITION IN THE WORLD
What has happened within this toxic atmosphere is that the Indian justice system's position in the world has dipped badly. The World Justice Project's original research and data, grounded in the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index, measures how the rule of law is experienced and perceived worldwide based on household and expert surveys in 140 countries and jurisdictions. Views of policy makers, civil society organizations, academics, the media, citizens, businesses and legal professionals and others are taken into consideration.
In the Overall Index score, No.1 is Denmark, while India is at No. 77. Within this overall index, when Constraints on Government Powers is considered, Denmark is again at No. 1, while India is at 52. Even in the field of the protection of Fundamental Rights, India is a low 94, with even Brazil, Niger, Mexico and Malaysia ahead.
THE REST OF THE WORLD
This story is from the February 13, 2023 edition of India Legal.
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This story is from the February 13, 2023 edition of India Legal.
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JUSTICE LEAGUE
There are few judicial appointment procedures in the world that are completely bereft of the overarching presence of either the executive or the legislature, or both. In the end, the judge is left with all the powers vested in him/her by the constitution to uphold the rule of law, within an atmosphere of external influences
