NEW DELHI, Feb 6: With the constitution of the National Judicial Appointments Commission taking time, appointments to high judiciary will continue to be made by the prevailing collegium system.
Highly placed sources in the government today said appointments to the Supreme court and the 24 High Courts cannot be stopped till the new system takes shape in accordance with the law passed.
The comment came amid reports that Collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India and comprising four other senior Supreme Court Judges, met here to discuss appointment and transfer of judges recently.
An additional judge of Punjab and Haryana High Court was today transferred to Jammu and Kashmir High Court in the same capacity, making it clear that appointments to higher judiciary continue to be made by the Collegium.
Some news reports had earlier claimed that government has put on hold appointment of judges till two public interest litigations filed in the Supreme Court challenging the validity of the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act are disposed of.
The sources, however, explained that government is going slow on framing rules of the proposed body due to pending petitions. Till then, the Collegium will make appointments.
Before the rules are framed, a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India and leader of largest opposition party in Lok Sabha will meet to nominate two “eminent persons” to the NJAC.
One of the eminent persons will be nominated from among the persons belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, minorities or women.
The eminent persons will be nominated for a period of three years and will not be eligible for renomination.
The NJAC will be headed by the Chief Justice of India. Two senior-most apex court judges, the two eminent persons and the Law Minister will be the members of the high-level panel.
The President had signed the NJAC bill into an Act on December 31. But its has not been enforced pending framing of rules and nomination of eminent persons. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel