The Supreme Court on Wednesday threw out a petition that asked for a ‘cooling off’ period to be fixed for judges who seek post-retirement jobs.
Citing the recent appointment of former CJI P Sathasivam as Governor of Kerala, a petitioner Mohammad Ali asked the apex court to ensure such instances are not repeated. According to his counsel Deepak Prakash by accepting the post of Governor, the former CJI had undermined the high constitutional office he held.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Hl Dattu dismissed the petition refusing to entertain the same without giving any reasons as sought for by the petitioner. The petition had even demanded the State or Centre to consult CJI or Chief Justice of HC before appointing a retired judge to any post.
The petitioner referred to first law Commission’s report which said the “average citizen may well get the impression that a Judge who might look forward to being employed by the Government after retirement doesn’t bring to bear on his work that detachment of outlook which is expected of a Judge in cases in which Government is a party.”