Repeated attacks in higher judiciary is to ‘delegitimise’ their decision-making process, alleges Congress MP Manish Tewari

Manish Tewari. File
| Photo Credit: Today News 24

Senior Congress leader and advocate Manish Tewari on December 3 said repeated attacks on the higher judiciary are being made to “delegitimise” its decision-making process.

His comments come a day after Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar had said that there is no instance in the world where a Constitutional amendment unanimously assed by Parliament, reflecting the will of the people, can be undone by the judiciary.

Though the Vice-President didn’t explicitly name the Constitutional amendment, his referrence was to the now quashed National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) through the 99th amendment that sought to replace the Collegium system of appointing judges.

“I am surprised at Vice-President @jdhankhar1 rather vitriolic diatribe against NJAC judgement of Supreme Court. As a lawyer he understands that in our Constitutional scheme,Courts are final arbiters of Laws even those passed unanimously by legislature,”Mr Tewari said on Twitter.

“First Law Minister @KirenRijiju now @jdhankhar1 there seems to be a concerted attempt to delegitimise the decision making process of the Higher Judiciary,”he added.

Mr. Tewari said judges are not infallible but if the government had a problem with the NJAC judgement, it should have brought a new law before Parliament.

“What is the rationale in attacking the judiciary, withholding judicial appointments unless this is a softening up exercise for something portentous in the works. The stage for a larger executive-judiciary confrontation is being set. It does not auger well for our Constitutional design,” the Congress leader noted.

Over the past few weeks, there have been sharp exchanges between the Law Minister Kiren Rijiju and the Supreme Court regarding judicial appointments.

While Mr. Rijiju in an interview to Times Now channel claimed that the top court should not say about the government sitting over the Collegium’s recommendations or else “they [Collegium] shouldn’t files to the government”.

Without naming the Law Minister, a Supreme Court Bench led by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul disapproved such remarks. “Let them give the power. We have no difficulty,” Justice Kaul had said in response.