The Centre told the Parliament on Thursday that it currently has no plan to reintroduce the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), which was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2015.
Responding to a question by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge and CPI(M) MP John Brittas, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju in a written response said, “at present, there is no such proposal.” Kharge and Brittas had asked if the government proposed to reintroduce NJAC with suitable modifications. The Centre’s response comes at a time when it is at loggerheads with the judiciary over the process of appointment of judges.
Last week, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar had remarked that it was “never too late to reflect” on the NJAC, while underlining the “primacy of the will of the people.”
The Constitution (99th Amendment) Act, which established the NJAC and the NJAC Act, were passed by the Parliament in 2014 to set up a commission for appointing judges, replacing the Collegium system. The NJAC would give the government a foot in the door on appointment of judges. The laws were repealed in October 2015 after the Supreme Court struck them down.
The Law Ministry also said, as on December 5, there are eight recommendations of the Collegium for appointment as High Court Judges and one proposal for appointment of Supreme Court judge pending with the government. The ministry added that there were 11 recommendations of the Collegium for transfer of High Court Judges and a recommendation of transfer of a Chief Justice of a High Court that were pending with the government.