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Union Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday slammed the Congress for creating a fuss over the government’s decision to hold back the recommendation of the Supreme Court collegium for the elevation of Uttarakhand High Court Justice K M Joseph, and reminded the party of the times when the judges were superseded in the past and efforts were made to influence judgements.
“The hue and cry made by my friends in the Congress Party recently when the Government referred a case back for reconsideration, fades into the oblivion. It is part of the much diluted role of an elected Government that relevant inputs be brought to the notice of the collegium. This is consonance with democratic accountability. All must know this important chapter of history,” Jaitley posted on Facebook.
Taking to the social media platform to provide the opposition “an opportunity to look at the mirror”, the senior BJP leader listed out a number of instances where judges of the Supreme Court were superceded and its recommendations were turned down.
Jaitley began his post by citing a case from the Nehru era. He said when Justice H J Kania started recommending names for appointment to the High Courts, it had caused a significant flutter. “Justice H.J. Kania took over as the first Indian Chief Justice of the Federal Court – the pre-constitution predecessor of the Supreme Court. When Justice Kania started recommending names for appointment to the High Courts, it caused a significant flutter. Pt. Nehru questioned his suitability to be the first Chief Justice of India. It was only Patel’s pragmatism that had enabled him to “manage” Justice Kania,” he said.
Moving over to the Indira Gandhi era, the BJP leader said, “Chief Justice Hidayatullah recommended the names of Justice S.P. Kotwal, the Chief Justice of Bombay; Justice M.S. Menon, Chief Justice of Kerala to the Supreme Court. The executive did not respond to either of the two names and ignored the recommendations. The Chief Justice meekly submitted and never questioned the inaction.”