BJP-led NDA builds parliamentary consensus
With Parliament passing the 99th Constitution Amendment Bill and the National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2014, the BJP-led NDA Government has scored a major political victory. It is not an easy task for the ruling coalition to get a Constitutional Amendment, especially in the first Session of Parliament. The process requires building consensus with the Opposition as a Constitutional Amendment needs to be passed by a two-thirds majority. However, the BJP-led NDA regime managed to bring on board all major parties including the Samajwadi Party, the Bahujan Samaj Party, the AIADMK, the DMK and the Trinamool Congress. Eventually, even the Congress, which had opposed the ruling coalition's decision to withdraw an older version of the Bill that it had previously tabled in the Rajya Sabha, fell in line. The new Government is now just a few steps away from overhauling the manner in which judges are appointed to the Supreme Court and high courts. The two pieces of legislation will have to be approved by at least half of the State legislatures and will come into force after receiving the President's assent. The process will take a few more months but it must be seen to its logical conclusion. The current collegium system of appointment of judges is opaque and leaves the system open to manipulation. The new plan is to put the appointments responsibility in the hands of a six member committee which will include the Chief Justice of India, two judges of the Supreme Court, the Union Minister for law and Justice, and two eminent persons chosen by the Chief Justice, the Prime Minister and the leader of Opposition (or the leader of the largest opposition party in lok Sabha). This is a significant step towards making the appointment process more transparent.
The problems with the collegium system, which has essentially allowed a closed coterie of jurists to huddle together and make decisions of national import without any real scrutiny, hardly require further elucidation. Of course, this is not to say that the old system has failed entirely or that the new system will be flawless. The old system has seen many able jurists of integrity occupy high positions in court. As for the new panel, it too will be a collegium of sorts, but with a broader base. Critics of the new system argue that it robs the judiciary of its independence. Such statements hold no water. Other constitutional authorities are similarly appointed by mixed member panels and that does not impinge on their autonomy. Also, given the recent allegations by Mr Markandey Katju, a former Supreme Court judge, against the collegium, there is enough reason to question if the old system was, indeed, impervious to political interference.