Inquiry) Bill, 2006 (Presented to the Rajya Sabha on 17 Th August 2007) (Laid on the Table of the Lok Sabha on 17 Th August, 2007
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http://rajyasabha.nic.in/book2/reports/personnel/21streport.htm PARLIAMENT OF INDIA RAJYA SABHA DEPARTMENT RELATED PARLIAMENTARY STANDING COMMITTEE ON PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES, LAW AND JUSTICE TWENTY FIRST REPORT ON THE JUDGES (INQUIRY) BILL, 2006 (PRESENTED TO THE RAJYA SABHA ON 17 TH AUGUST 2007) (LAID ON THE TABLE OF THE LOK SABHA ON 17 TH AUGUST, 2007) RAJYA SABHA SECRETARIAT NEW DELHI AUGUST, 2007/SRAVANA, 1928 (SAKA) C O N T E N T S 1. COMPOSITION OF THE COMMITTEE 2. INTRODUCTION 3. REPORT 4. MINUTES OF DISSENT SUBMITTED BY SHRI RAM JETHMALANI, M.P. 5. MINUTES OF DISSENT SUBMITTED BY SHRI VIRENDRA BHATIA, M.P. 6*. RELEVANT MINUTES OF THE MEETINGS OF THE COMMITTEE 7*. ANNEXURE A. THE JUDGES (INQUIRY) BILL, 2006. B. COMMENTS OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE ON THE VIEWS/SUGGESTIONS CONTAINED IN MEMORANDA SUBMITTED BY INDIVIDUALS/ORGANISATIONS/EXPERTS ON VARIOUS PROVISIONS OF THE BILL. C. COMMENTS/SUGGESTIONS RECEIVED FROM VARIOUS HIGH COURTS. D. VIEWS/SUGGESTIONS RECEIVED FROM FORMER CHIEF JUSTICES OF INDIA/OTHER JUDGES OF THE SUPREME COURT/EMINENT LAWYERS. 1 of 61 8/24/2007 1:06 PM http://rajyasabha.nic.in/book2/reports/personnel/21streport.htm COMPOSITION OF THE COMMITTEE (2006-07) (Constituted on 5 th August, 2006) 1. Dr. E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan ¾ Chairman RAJYA SABHA 2. Dr. Radhakant Nayak 3. Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi 4. Shri Balavant alias Bal Apte 5. Shri Virendra Bhatia 6. Shri Tariq Anwar 7. Shri Ram Jethmalani 8. Dr. P.C. Alexander 9. Shri Tarlochan Singh 10. Shri Suresh Bhardwaj LOK SABHA 11. Dr. Shafiqur Rahman Barq 12. Shri Chhattar Singh Darbar 13. Shri N.Y. Hanumanthappa 14. Shri Shailendra Kumar 15. Dr. C. Krishnan 16. Shri Harin Pathak 17. Shri Dahyabhai Vallabhbhai Patel 18. Shri Varkala Radhakrishnan 19. Prof. M. Ramadass 20. Shri Vishvendra Singh 21. Shri Bhupendrasinh Solanki 22. Shri Raj Babbar 23. Shri S.K. Kharventhan 24. Shri A. Krishnaswamy 25. Shri Anirudh Prasad alias Sadhu Yadav 26. Shri N.S.V. Chitthan 27. Vacant 28. Vacant 29. Vacant 30. Vacant 31. Vacant (i) 2 of 61 8/24/2007 1:06 PM http://rajyasabha.nic.in/book2/reports/personnel/21streport.htm COMPOSITION OF THE COMMITTEE (2007-08) (Constituted on 5 th August, 2007) 1. Dr. E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan ¾ Chairman RAJYA SABHA 2. Dr. Radhakant Nayak 3. Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi 4. Shri Balavant alias Bal Apte 5. Shri Suresh Bhardwaj 6. Shri Virendra Bhatia 7. Shri Tariq Anwar 8. Shri Ram Jethmalani 9. Dr. P.C. Alexander 10. Shri Tarlochan Singh LOK SABHA 11. Shri Raj Babbar 12. Dr. Shafiqur Rahman Barq 13. Shri N.S.V. Chitthan 14. Shri Chhattar Singh Darbar 15. Shri N.Y. Hanumanthappa 16. Shri S.K. Kharventhan 17. Shri A. Krishnaswamy 18. Dr. C. Krishnan 19. Shri Shailendra Kumar 20. Shri Harin Pathak 21. Shri Dahyabhai Vallabhbhai Patel 22. Shri Varkala Radhakrishnan 23. Prof. M. Ramadass 24. Shri Bhupendrasinh Solanki 25. Shri Vishvendra Singh 26. Shri Anirudh Prasad alias Sadhu Yadav 27. Vacant 28. Vacant 29. Vacant 30. Vacant 31. Vacant SECRETARIAT Shri Sham Sher Singh, Joint Secretary Shri K.P. Singh, Joint Director Smt. Sasilekha Nair, Deputy Director Shri Vinoy Kumar Pathak, Assistant Director (ii) 3 of 61 8/24/2007 1:06 PM http://rajyasabha.nic.in/book2/reports/personnel/21streport.htm INTRODUCTION I, the Chairman of the Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, having been authorised by the Committee, present its Twenty first Report on the Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2006*. The Bill seeks to establish the National Judicial Council to undertake preliminary investigation and inquire into allegations of misbehaviour or incapacity of a Judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court and to regulate the procedure for such investigation, inquiry and proof, and for imposing minor measures and for the presentation of an address by Parliament to the President of India and for matters connected therewith. 2. In pursuance of the rules relating to Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee, Hon’ble Chairman, Rajya Sabha in consultation with Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha referred** the Bill, as introduced in the Lok Sabha on the 19th December, 2006 and pending therein, to the Committee on the 26th December, 2006 for examination and report. 3. Keeping in view the importance of the Bill, the Committee decided to issue Press Communique to solicit views/suggestions from interested individuals/ organisations/institutions on various provisions of the Bill. Accordingly, a Press Communiqué was issued in response to which memoranda containing suggestions were received by the Committee from the general public, persons from the legal profession, former Judges and eminent Jurists and others. 4. The Committee held preliminary discussion on the Bill in its meeting held on the 18th January, 2007. A Press Conference was subsequently addressed by the Committee on that day to elicit public opinion on the various provisions of the Bill. It further considered and heard a presentation on the Bill by the Secretary, Ministry of Law and Justice (Department of Justice) in its meeting held on the 25th January and 2nd February, 2007. 5. The Committee heard oral evidence of twenty five individuals/organisations/ institutions/ experts during the course of examination of the Bill. 6. While considering the Bill, the Committee took note of the following documents/information placed before it: — (i) Background note on the Bill, supplied by the Government; (ii) Memoranda received from various organisations/institutions/ individuals/experts on the provisions of the Bill; and (iii) The comments of the Ministry of Law and Justice on the views/suggestions contained in the memoranda received from various organisations/institutions/individuals/experts on the provisions of the Bill. 7. The Committee held clause-by-clause consideration of the Bill on the 14th and 25th June, 2007. 8. The Committee adopted the Report in its two meetings held on the 24th July, and 1st August, 2007. 9. The Committee in all held fifteen sittings to deliberate upon the various provisions of the Bill i.e. 18th & 25th January, 2nd, 13th & 20th, February, 13th March, 11th & 12th April, 8th May, 7th, 14th & 25th June, 4 of 61 8/24/2007 1:06 PM http://rajyasabha.nic.in/book2/reports/personnel/21streport.htm 17th & 24th July and 1st August, 2007. Besides its above mentioned sittings in Delhi the Committee interacted with various dignitaries/State Governments etc. during its study visits outside Delhi in 2007. 10. For the facility of reference and convenience, the observations and recommendations of the Committee have been printed in bold letters in the body of the Report. NEW DELHI E. M. SUDARSANA NATCHIAPPAN August, 2007. Chairman Committee on Personnel Public Grievances, Law and Justice REPORT 1. The Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2006 (Annexure – A) introduced in Lok Sabha on the 19th December, 2006 seeks to establish a National Judicial Council to undertake preliminary investigation and to inquire into allegations of misbehaviour or incapacity of a Judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court. The Bill also seeks to regulate the procedure for such investigation, inquiry and proof and to impose minor measures and for the presentation of an address by Parliament to the President and for matters connected therewith. 2. In the light of the above, the Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2006 was introduced* in the Lok Sabha on the 19th December, 2006. It was referred** to the Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice on the 26th December, 2006 for examination and report. 3. That the Bill has a definite legislative purpose, is elucidated by the Statement of Objects and Reasons appended to the Bill, which states as under :- “A suitable legislative framework is the need of the hour for empowering a judicial forum to deal with complaints against Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts. On the basis of the recommendations made in the 195th Report of the Law Commission of India on the Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2005, the Bill, namely the Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2006 has been prepared. It may be recalled that the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 was enacted with a view to lay down a procedure for removal for proved misbehaviour or incapacity of Judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court by way of address of the Houses of Parliament by the President. The Law Commission of India in its 195th Report has examined the issue of judicial accountability in the light of the law laid down by the Supreme Court in its various judgments, which relate to the interpretation of articles 121, 124 and 217 of the Constitution.” 3.1. While considering the Bill, the Committee felt the need to have vast range of discussions with legal luminaries, former Chief Justices of India and former Judges of the Supreme Court/High Courts and other stakeholders from the legal field. Since the subject matter of the Bill was of sensitive nature, the Committee decided to invite views suggestions from individuals/organisations also. It, accordingly, authorised the Secretariat to issue a press release for inviting views/suggestions. The Committee also organised a press conference on the 18th January, 2007 so that a wide publicity to the Bill is given by the print and electronic media. In response to the press release published on the 4th January, 2007 in the major English and Hindi 5 of 61 8/24/2007 1:06 PM http://rajyasabha.nic.in/book2/reports/personnel/21streport.htm dailies and vernacular news papers all over the country and the subsequent press conference held on 18th January, 2007 a number of representations/memoranda were received by the Committee Secretariat. 3.2. Since, the Committee endeavoured to hear legal experts, former Chief Justices of India, Judges of the Supreme Court/High Courts and other stakeholders in the legal field for an in depth appraisal of the various provisions of the Bill, it requested the Hon’ble Chairman, Rajya Sabha for extension of time on 20.3.2007.