Union Minister for Law and Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday said “no one has the right” to question the Centre’s intention about the appointment of the next Chief Justice of India, PTI reported. Prasad said the Centre has a prerogative to take a decision once the incumbent, Dipak Misra, names the senior-most Supreme Court judge as his successor.
According to protocol, Supreme Court judge Ranjan Gogoi should be Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra’s successor. Gogoi and three other senior top court judges had held an unprecedented press conference on January 12 to speak out against the manner in which Misra had been assigning cases to benches and other matters. Justice Jasti Chelameswar was the senior-most judge after Misra until he retired on May 18.
Prasad was responding to a reporter’s query on whether the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government would stick to protocol. “As far as the appointment of the chief justice of India is concerned, the convention is clear...the sitting chief justice names the senior-most judge [of the top court] as his successor,” Prasad said. “When the name comes to us, we will discuss it.”
The law minister said the apex court and the Centre were working on finalising the memorandum of procedure, a document that determines the appointment and transfer of judges in the top court and the 24 High Courts.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!