'Safeguard Judiciary From Unwarranted Pressures': Former Judges Writes To CJI Chandrachud
On Sunday, a group of 21 retired judges of the Supreme Court and High Court wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud indicating the attempts by certain factions to undermine the judiciary. The subject of the letter was titled, “need to safeguard judiciary from unwarranted pressures”.
Among the 21 former judges, four judges are from the apex court and 17 judges belonged the high courts. It included Justices Deepak Verma, Dinesh Maheshwari, Krishna Murari, and M R Shah.
In the letter, they extended concerns over increasing attempts by certain sections to weaken the judiciary through “calculated pressure, misinformation, and public disparagement.”
The retired judges adds that these elements, driven by narrow political interests and personal gains, are attempting to erode the public’s confidence in our judicial system.
The ex-judges did not mention the incidents that compelled them to write to the CJI. However, the letter came at a time when there was an escalating exchange of words between the ruling BJP and opposition parties over actions against some opposition leaders regarding corruption cases.
The judges claimed that there were clear attempts to influence judicial processes by discrediting the integrity of courts and judges. “Such actions not only disrespect the sanctity of our judiciary but also pose a direct challenge to the principles of fairness and impartiality that judges, as guardians of the law, have sworn to uphold,” the Economic Times reports as the judges said in the letter.
Adding further, the former judges stated that the strategy adopted by these groups are deeply troubling, spanning from the circulation of baseless theories aimed to disparage judiciary’s reputation to involving in overt and covert attempts to initial judicial outcomes to their favour.
“The practice of selectively praising judicial decisions that align with one”s views while vehemently criticising those that do not, undermines the very essence of judicial review and the rule of law,” the Economic Times reports, as the letter is saying.
The judges, therefore, requested the judiciary led by the top court to secure against such pressures and make sure that the sanctity and autonomy of the legal system are protected. “It is imperative that the judiciary remains a pillar of democracy, immune to the whims and fancies of transient political interests,” the Economic Times reports.
This G21 is not at all surprising. #4 on the list is a give-away. The gravest threat to the judiciary is coming from the Modi regime on whose behalf this letter has been put out. https://t.co/5h4q7jFErF
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) April 15, 2024
