SHILLONG, Sept 15 � Chief Justice of India-designate, Justice Altamas Kabir said today that the Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2012 �needs a lot of discussion� before its enactment.
Interacting with para-legal volunteers and judicial officials here from New Delhi via video-conferencing, Justice Kabir, said: �we need a lot of discussion (on the Bill)�it cannot be brought up just like this,� he said.
Reserving his further observations, the CJI-designate said he would be talking about the Bill after he takes over officially as the CJI that is schedule to take place on September 29.
The Bill, which broadly outlines seeking judicial standard and accountability from judges, has mandated removal of a judge from a Supreme Court and High Courts for �judicial misconduct.� The Bill also states that a judge must declare his assets and liabilities and also that of his spouse and children.
However, the Bill has been in the eye of the storm after it was passed in the Lok Sabha this year, as the judiciary, the executive and the civil society are at loggerheads on the contents and power envisaged therein. The Bill calls for setting up of a five-member National Judicial oversight committee to handle complaints against judges. The Bill also suggests the setting up of �Complaints Scrutiny Panel� at the High Courts and Supreme Court to be headed by serving judges to conduct the preliminary inquiries. Some of the members from the judiciary say that it would be difficult for a serving judge to scrutinise a colleague.
Another drawback of the Bill, according to the civil societies, is the clause which states that a judge can only be removed for judicial misconduct by the Parliament, but no FIR can be filed or criminal proceedings can be initiated.
SHILLONG, Sept 15 � Chief Justice of India-designate, Justice Altamas Kabir said today that the Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2012 �needs a lot of discussion� before its enactment.
Interacting with para-legal volunteers and judicial officials here from New Delhi via video-conferencing, Justice Kabir, said: �we need a lot of discussion (on the Bill)�it cannot be brought up just like this,� he said.
Reserving his further observations, the CJI-designate said he would be talking about the Bill after he takes over officially as the CJI that is schedule to take place on September 29.
The Bill, which broadly outlines seeking judicial standard and accountability from judges, has mandated removal of a judge from a Supreme Court and High Courts for �judicial misconduct.� The Bill also states that a judge must declare his assets and liabilities and also that of his spouse and children.
However, the Bill has been in the eye of the storm after it was passed in the Lok Sabha this year, as the judiciary, the executive and the civil society are at loggerheads on the contents and power envisaged therein. The Bill calls for setting up of a five-member National Judicial oversight committee to handle complaints against judges. The Bill also suggests the setting up of �Complaints Scrutiny Panel� at the High Courts and Supreme Court to be headed by serving judges to conduct the preliminary inquiries. Some of the members from the judiciary say that it would be difficult for a serving judge to scrutinise a colleague.
Another drawback of the Bill, according to the civil societies, is the clause which states that a judge can only be removed for judicial misconduct by the Parliament, but no FIR can be filed or criminal proceedings can be initiated.
