Justice Ajay Rastogi of the Supreme Court, who resigned on June 17, praised the Collegium method of choosing judges and claimed that Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud is in charge of the court in a trustworthy manner.
His remarks come at a time when Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Law Minister Kiren Rijiju have frequently spoken against the Collegium system and in favor of judges being appointed by a National Judicial Appointments Commission.
During the riots in Gujarat in 2002, Bilkis Bano was the victim of gang-rape and seven members of her family were slain. The Gujarat government last year awarded remission to all 11 of the convicted.
“The Collegium system of selecting judges is effective and offers a framework for carefully selecting justices. The CJI should be commended for bringing the court closer to the public through live broadcasting and the virtual courts system. The judiciary is in good hands under CJI Chandrachud, and I have learned a lot from him, remarked Justice Rastogi.
The judge claimed that while the Supreme institution has always been powerful, public confidence in the institution has recently grown. The court has become more accessible to people since they can now watch how justice is carried out. We have learned from CJI Chandrachud that decisions should be made in light of the actual situation. Every person who approaches the court should receive full justice, he claims, and we work for the people.
Regarding the topic of judge selection, Justice Rastogi stated that the Collegium’s judges have extensive expertise, and the government and Intelligence Bureau are also involved in the procedure. “If the government has a problem, it can bring it up with the Collegium,” he stated. How much more filtration is possible? The system is now open and clear. Details of the discussions are contained in the Collegium report, which is made public.
Justice Rastogi added that criticising the government alone does not qualify as being unbiased. He remarked, “I think an impartial judge is one who evaluates cases on the basis of facts.
Written By- Aditya Singh, College Name- Army Law College, Pune, Semester- 2nd Semester Student an Intern under Legal Vidhya