Govt sends dissent note to collegium
The NDA Government is not ready to accept senior advocate Gopal Subramanium as a Supreme Court judge. In a note sent to the Supreme Court Collegium to reconsider Subramanium’s name, the Government has flagged two major concerns that could jeopardise the senior lawyer’s prospect of elevation as judge of the apex court.
Sources in the law Ministry indicated that a decision at the highest level was taken with regard to the four names forwarded by the SC Collegium for appointment as SC judges. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his team, comprising Union law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad are understood to have cleared the names of senior lawyer Rohington Nariman and two High Court Chief Justices — Arun Mishra and Adrash Kumar Goel — for elevation as judges of the top court, reservations were expressed on the name of Subramanium.
The Government has pointed to the SC that Subramanium, when he was Solicitor General in the 2G case, had allowed the counsel for one of the accused and former Telecom Minister A Raja to attend the briefings by CBI officials held at his residence. The CBI officials brought this matter to the notice of then CBI Director Ashwini Kumar, who intervened, and, later with the help of law Ministry, got Subramanium replaced.
Top sources in the Government indicated that the note sent by the Government to the Collegium also includes another fact as basis to reconsider Subramanium’s name.
It relates to the infamous telephone transcripts of corporate lobbyist Nira Radia, where the name of Subramanium finds mention in relation to various conversations Radia had with high profile persons.
Now, it would be up to the Chief Justice of India and four senior judges of the apex court to reconsider on the suitability of Subramanium. The Memorandum of Procedure for Appointment of judges of Supreme Court requires the Collegium to consider the note of dissent by the Centre and arrive at a decision. The Collegium can resend the name or choose to withdraw it. In the event the name is returned, the Government is left with little choice other than to approve the same. However, no time frame is specified for completion of this process due to which the Government may choose not to act for an indefinite period.
Subramanium, who was Solicitor General in the previous UPA regime is known for his contribution in the Gujarat riots cases and the 1993 Mumbai blast cases. He later served a Chairman of Bar Council of India and was instrumental in introducing an All India Bar Examination for enrolling as lawyers. lately, in his role as amicus curiae Subramanium played a pivotal role to wrest the Padmanabha Swamy temple, a century-old temple in Kerala, from the clutches of the Travancore royal family and administer it under supervision of the District Judge and the State.