Bar & Bench News Network
In yet another instance of defiance against the mass transfer initiated by CJI S.H. Kapadia, a Delhi High Court judge, Justice S.N. Aggarwal (pictured) has said that "internal politics" amongst judges will ruin the judiciary.
The Hindustan Times reports that the 60-year-old Aggarwal, who has always lived in Delhi, had asked the CJI not to transfer him citing, personal problems. He has two years of service left and his wife Bimla, suffering from cardio, psychiatric and kidney-related problems has been on regular dialysis. Justice Aggarwal believes that a judge and other influential neighbors have complained against him, after he held religious functions at his house to seek divine blessings for his ailing wife and this has resulted in his transfer.
Speaking at a full court meeting, Justice Aggarwal said, “I wish to caution all my colleagues that any divide or internal politics among the judges shall not benefit anybody, but only those who are hell bent on ruining this system making frivolous complaints against one or the other judge. Our justice delivery system commands high respect and the citizens have placed the judiciary on a high pedestal. After me, the court will be manned by 39 judges and my appeal to them is not to work as 39 individual judges but to become a role model for upcoming generations by working as one composite united family”.
The CJI had initiated one of the biggest mass transfers of High Court judges in September and again in October where he had transferred 20 and 11 judges respectively citing “public interest”. While the CJI’s move was lauded by various sections of the civil society, there were some diffident voices who felt that the CJI should have given a more specific reason for the transfer. In the first sign of defiance, Justice Rajiv Shyamrao Mohite of the Bombay High Court had tendered his resignation to President Pratibha Patil citing "personal reasons" when his request for time off before assuming his new post due to urgent family related concerns was turned down by the SC collegium.
Justice Aggarwal who is due to be transferred to the Madhya Pradesh High Court is a gold medalist from Delhi University who enrolled at the Bar in 1980. He was a member of Faculty of Law at the Delhi University before he was appointed as an Additional District and Sessions Judge in Delhi in 1991. He was appointed as Chairman of an All India Working Group for suggesting amendments in Recovery of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institution Act, 1993. Justice Aggarwal was elevated to the Delhi High Court as an Additional Judge in 2006 and was made permanent in 2007.
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- 1. "I believe that HMJ Aggarwal has violated the rules of discipline by being critical of Hon'ble the CJI, HMJ Kapadia. Why has HMJ Aggarwal only disclosed half the story behind his transfer? HMJ Kapadia, Hon'ble the CJI has been gracious enough not to have disclosed the reasons behind the mass transfers of the Hon'ble judges, otherwise many of them may have been unable to look the people and the bar in the eye. ". Abhay Sapru, New Delhi
- 2. "I believe that HMJ Aggarwal has violated the rules of discipline by being critical of Hon'ble the CJI, HMJ Kapadia. Why has HMJ Aggarwal only disclosed half the story behind his transfer? HMJ Kapadia, Hon'ble the CJI has been gracious enough not to have disclosed the reasons behind the mass transfers of the Hon'ble judges, otherwise many of them may have been unable to look the people and the bar in the eye. ". Abhay Sapru, New Delhi
- 3. "Grievance regarding transfer of judges can be redressed if the transfers are made routine. Lower judiciary is subjected to transfers frequently. At the higher level, it should not pose if certain conditions are applied for all the members of higher judiciary. Even in a particular high court, the portfolios of are altered judges periodically. In High Courts with multi-city Benches, judges are rotated among the Benches. If a person is elevated to High Court at say 47 or 50 years, he stays on till 62 in the same high court except at the fag end of the career when the judge becomes Chief Justice. Such a long tenure is felt as not advisable to dispense justice and the system of transfer is brought in. There are family and health problems at say 55 to 60 years. But that cannot be reason to stay put in a single High Court. The Supreme Court Collegium should evolve a policy wherein (a) All High Court judges are subject to transfers once in 3 years to another High Court, even if it is from parent High Court. (b) Judges transfers per se are made transparent and uniform. (c) The complaints of corruption and discrimination and partiality against Judges are disposed of speedily and effectively. (d) To curb favouritism in transfers, postings can be decided a few months in advance, so that the rotation policy is not affected, through a mechanism of Supreme Court Judges and Senior Chief Justices of High Courts which will become a sort of transfer committee. ". Nunukkam, CHENNAI
- 4. " GRIEVANCE AGAINST TRANSFERS, AS A SPECIAL AND EXCEPTIONAL MATTER IS JUSTIFIED. IT IS ALSO QUITE JUSTIFIED THAT BASIS OF TRANSFERS SHOULD NOT BE COMPLAINTS OF INFLUENTIAL NEIGHBORS. THE FACT REMAINS THAT TRANSFER IS ESSENTIAL CONDITION FOR SERVICE, IT CAN NOT BE REGARDED AS PENALTY. ONE WHO JOINS THE SERVICE SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR THE EVENTUALITY. THE COURTS VERY OFTEN ARE DECLINED TO ISSUE WRITS AGAINST ORDERS OF TRANSFER QUOTING THE SAME REASONS THAT T IS CONDITION OF SERVICE.". SANJAY , GWALIOR
- 5. "there should not be double standard if a judge of lower judiciary is compulsory transferred in every three years and never ever transferred to his home district then same should be the policy for other judges but it should be transparent and not based on caste and other considerations". Moosa, (Unknown City?)
- 6. "there should not be double standard if a judge of lower judiciary is compulsory transferred in every three years and never ever transferred to his home district then same should be the policy for other judges but it should be transparent and not based on caste and other considerations". Moosa, (Unknown City?)
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The Viewpoint: Indemnification Provisions - Is the fight on the indemnity clause worth the effort?
May 17, 2012 | Bar & Bench brings to you the twentieth article on 'The Viewpoint' series with its Knowledge Partner AZB & Partners. AZB Senior Associate Nandish Vyas and Associate Pranati Ishwar in this article seek to examine the context in which indemnification rights are relevant for acquisition transactions, and also seek to explore if there are areas where they are potentially not worth the comments (2)
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