Chief Justice of India RM lodha set a precedent on his last day in office by saying he will not accept any Government assignment post-retirement. lodha retires as the 42nd CJI on Saturday after remaining at the helm of the judiciary for five months.
“You won’t see me in any constitutional post,” said Justice lodha at a Press gathering on Friday, sharing his personal view that a judge of the Supreme Court (SC) or High Court (HC) should not accept any constitutional post or Government assignment at least for a period of two years after retirement.
Speaking on an array of issues confronting him during his tenure as CJI, Justice lodha spoke on the recently-enacted National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), his proposal to make courts functional round the year, judicial appointments during his tenure, and his future plans.
Being candid and bold about judges taking post-retirement jobs, CJI said: “I hold the view that the CJI or SC judge or even judge of the HC should not accept any constitutional position or assignment connected to the Government and should it happen, there must be a cooling off period of two years.” When asked to comment on his predecessor Justice P Sathasivam who was appointed Governor of Kerala recently, he refused to make any personal comment.
On NJAC, the CJI shared the view that any external body other than the judiciary is not better equipped to handle appointments. “Judges are best equipped to assess the lawyers to be elevated, their academic and professional traits, and standing in the bar,” he said. He side-stepped a question on whether he still agreed that the CBI was a “caged parrot”, a phrase coined by him. “I have left the coal case midway and for me whatever could be said regarding the position I hold, I have not withheld from saying. Some things, I want to say could not be said even after my retirement.”
On the question whether he would make disclosures of the kind made by Justice Markandey Katju who created a sensation by exposing judicial corruption in his blogs, the CJI said: “After September 27, I want to live my freedom by giving time to myself, which is something I have not done for the past two decades.” Although he confessed he faced no pressure of any kind during his tenure as CJI or even as judge of SC, Justice lodha regretted having hastily proposed to make SC functional for 365 days.
“I regret it deeply. I feel that my suggestion was not rightly understood.” He admitted that before bringing out the plan there ought to have been a dialogue with Bar members. But with the proposal dropped, Justice lodha said: “An opportunity to help us streamline the functioning of courts has been lost.”
During his tenure, lodha created history by elevating two senior members of the Bar as judges of the SC. “I have been working towards bringing diversity in judiciary.” Besides getting talent from the Bar, he brought to the SC a woman judge and judges from remote parts of the country. His short stint as CJI was also instrumental in resisting any attempts by the executive to encroach upon judicial space. “In a democracy there must be strong judiciary, executive and legislature. Friction between them is a sign of a healthy democracy. Problems sometimes arise as lines are not clearly drawn but one must remain within parameters of the Constitution.”