Jun 25 2014 : The Economic Times (Delhi)
All-India Service likely to Run Subordinate Judiciary
GANGADHAR S PATIL
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NEW DELHI
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Proposal to come up for law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's consideration in a couple of days
The disparate lower judiciary of varying abilities may be transformed into a national body of professionals along the lines of the Indian Administrative Service, if the government agrees to take up a long-pending proposal for the creation of an all-India judicial service to run the subordinate judiciary.The proposal, kept in the cold storage by the UPA for long, is expected to come up for law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad's consideration in a couple of days. Law ministry officials told ET that they have prepared and will soon send a detailed note on the objections and views of state governments and chief justices of all the high courts during various meetings held on the issue.
“After the last attempt to reach a consensus in the conference of chief ministers and chief justices of high court in April, 2013, the government has not taken any major decision.
We will apprise the new minister on the status of the scheme,“ said a senior law ministry official.
The recruitment to the lower judiciary is now done by the respective high courts. The two routes to the service are the lower subordinate entry level of magistrates and the higher one of additional session judges, recruited and administered by the high courts, which have the authority to promote, punish and transfer these judicial officials. Once they become district judges they are eligible to be considered for positions in the high courts as well. The new scheme provides for centralised, direct, recruitment of judicial officers. So, instead of the high courts recruiting courts recruiting and administering them, AIJS provides for a centrally administered exam and monitoring by a central administrative authority, which could even be the Supreme Court.
The union government has been working with the state governments and chief justices of various high courts to push through the AIJS. Article 312 of the Constitution was amended in 1977 to provide for AIJS, but because of concerns like the issue of litigation in local languages raised by some state governments and high courts, successive governments at the Centre could never implement the scheme.
“States and high courts are apprehensive of the scheme because, if implemented, it would take away their powers to appoint and administer subordinate judges,“ said the senior law ministry official.
The Supreme Court had in 1991 endorsed the creation of an AIJS.
“After the last attempt to reach a consensus in the conference of chief ministers and chief justices of high court in April, 2013, the government has not taken any major decision.
We will apprise the new minister on the status of the scheme,“ said a senior law ministry official.
The recruitment to the lower judiciary is now done by the respective high courts. The two routes to the service are the lower subordinate entry level of magistrates and the higher one of additional session judges, recruited and administered by the high courts, which have the authority to promote, punish and transfer these judicial officials. Once they become district judges they are eligible to be considered for positions in the high courts as well. The new scheme provides for centralised, direct, recruitment of judicial officers. So, instead of the high courts recruiting courts recruiting and administering them, AIJS provides for a centrally administered exam and monitoring by a central administrative authority, which could even be the Supreme Court.
The union government has been working with the state governments and chief justices of various high courts to push through the AIJS. Article 312 of the Constitution was amended in 1977 to provide for AIJS, but because of concerns like the issue of litigation in local languages raised by some state governments and high courts, successive governments at the Centre could never implement the scheme.
“States and high courts are apprehensive of the scheme because, if implemented, it would take away their powers to appoint and administer subordinate judges,“ said the senior law ministry official.
The Supreme Court had in 1991 endorsed the creation of an AIJS.
