Judicial Reform for the Appointment of Judges: Need of the Hour

Abstract

The Court of Law is considered to be one of the most important institutions in a democratic republic. India is the only country in the world where the Judges appoint the other Judges in Higher Judiciary through collegium. In the last few decades, the collegium system has come under severe criticism for being secretive and unknown to the public, and meritorious candidates are denied an opportunity to serve on the bench for undisclosed reasons. In order to tackle this issue of immense importance, the Parliament brought the NJAC Act, 2014 establishing the National Judicial Appointment Commission for the appointment of Judges in High Courts and the Supreme Court. However, the NJAC Act, 2014 has been declared unconstitutional on grounds that it interferes with the Independence of the Judiciary, which is the basic structure of the Constitution. The authors in this academic venture have discussed the pros and cons of the collegium system and judicial appointment commission in the light of the Judgment of the Supreme Court.

Keywords: Judicial Reforms, Collegium System, Appointment of Judges, NJAC Act 2014, Independence of Judiciary.

JEL Classification: K10, K30, K33,