27 proposals on judges pending with govt: Ranjan Gogoi

New Delhi: Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi on Friday dispelled the impression that many proposals on the appointment of judges are pending with the Centre and said that “hardly 27 proposals are pending with the government”.

The CJI gave this information to advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the Centre, for the public interest litigation alleging that the government is holding back the files of many appointments recommended by the apex court collegium.

The CJI told the counsel that “there are almost 70 to 80 proposals before the collegium and hardly 27 before the government”.

Mr Bhushan argued that in as many as nine instances, there has been no appointment despite reiteration of the recommendation by the collegium and this is happening when the court has clearly held that once candidates’ names are reiterated, they have to be appointed. There are a lot of cases where the government has not responded.”

The petition alleges that the Centre’s act of not notifying the names, which have either been recommended more than six weeks back or have already been reiterated by the collegium, is violative of the apex court verdict.

It wanted a direction that names of lawyers and judges, who have been reiterated by the collegium for appointment as high court judges, be cleared expeditiously for appointment by the Central government.

It contended that the Central government’s failure to act on the files of those recommended by the collegium for appointment as judges showed complete disregard for the law laid down by this court.

The present picture presented a virtual breakdown of the consultative process, thereby diminishing, if not destroying, the primacy of the CJI with regard to judicial appointments.