Madras high court judge questions collegium selection, calls it ‘unfair’

In the 60-judge Madras high court, 13 posts are vacant and the 
high court collegium has already recommended 12 names for appointment 
as additional judges.

A Subramani,TNN | Jan 9, 2014,

CHENNAI: A judge of the Madras high court on Wednesday walked in as a special bench was hearing a PIL against the proposed appointment of new judges and said the choice of probables was not fair. 

Justice CS Karnan took everyone by surprise as he entered their court hall and said, "The selection is unfair. I am also a part of the judiciary. I want to file an affidavit in my own name. Please take note of it." Then, just as abruptly as he entered, he exited. 

The bench ordered maintenance of status quo in respect of the recommended names, thereby effectively restraining the Centre from processing the list. 

In the 60-judge Madras high court, 13 posts are vacant and the high court collegium has already recommended 12 names for appointment as additional judges. The controversy broke after the shortlisted names became known in judicial circles and many started questioning the eligiblity of some of the probables. 

The Madras high court Advocates Association ( MHAA) president RC Paul Kanagaraj had announced a one-day court boycott on Wednesday. 

The filing of a PIL, boycott of court proceedings and a serving judge's threat to implead himself in the case do not have precedence in any court in the country, say jurists, and is indicative of a charged atmosphere in the high court. 

Jurists cited the Kumar Padma Prasad case, wherein Guwahati high court stayed a presidential notification appointing KN Srivastava as high court judge. Later, the Supreme Court suo motu transferred the case unto itself and ultimately quashed the very appointment itself as he did not fulfill mandatory eligibility criteria. 

The Justice Karnan episode has ignited a debate in the legal fraternity on whether a serving judge can initiate any litigation in the same court when he has other options available such as expressing his views at full court meetings or complaining directly to the chief justice concerned. 

In November 2011, Justice Karnan had created a flutter across the nation when he petitioned the National Commission for SC/STs, alleging caste discrimination and harassment by his fellow judges.