Q. With reference to important Supreme court (SC) Judgements for appointments of Supreme and High court judges, consider the following pairs:
Famous judges’ case Description/ Ruling
1. First Judges Case-1981 SC introduced the collegium system.
2. Second Judges Case-1993 Collegium would be a five-member body
3. Third Judges Case-1998 The sole opinion of the chief justice of India does not constitute the consultation process.
How many pairs given above are correctly matched?
Exp) Option a is the correct answer.
India’s Constitution originally stipulated that the judges of the Supreme Court and high courts would be appointed by the President based on a process of “consultation” with senior judges. The Collegium System was introduced in response to the executive interference in judicial appointments. The present collegium system emerged later based on three key rulings.
Pair 1 is incorrectly matched. In 1981, the “First Judges Case” ruled that the process of consultation with the CJI and other judges by the President under Article 124 did not mean concurrence. Based on this judgement, the President is not bound by CJI’s advice.
Pair 2 is incorrectly matched. In 1993, the “Second Judges Case” overturned this decision and introduced the collegium system, arguing that “consultation” required “concurrence.” CJI’s advice is binding. Further CJI is required to formulate its advice based on a collegium of judges consisting of CJI and two senior-most SC judges.
Pair 3 is correctly matched. In Third Judges case (1998), the Court opined that the consultation process to be adopted by the Chief justice of India requires ‘consultation of plurality judges’. The sole opinion of the chief justice of India does not constitute the consultation process. He should consult a collegium of four seniormost judges of the Supreme Court and even if two judges give an adverse opinion, he should not send the recommendation to the government.
