Sources have confirmed that the Registry of the Supreme Court of India is filing an appeal challenging the ruling of the Delhi High Court that the office of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) falls within the purview of the Right to Information Act. The 60 days limitation to file an appeal over a judgment of a High Court is due to expire on March 12.

The appeal drafted by Supreme Court lawyer Devdutt Kamat, is said to have met the approval of the registry and the Chief Justice of India.   Attorney General, Ghoolam E. Vahanvati will present the arguments on behalf of the Registry of the Supreme Court. The appeal aims to stay the January 12 High Court judgment, that brought to the public domain, correspondence between the CJI and other members of the Judiciary, and the niggling issue of the judges’ assets.

The CJI was quoted saying too much scrutiny will hamper the functioning and independence of the judiciary. However, the three Judge Bench comprising the then Chief Justice A.P. Shah, and Justices Vikramjit Sen and S. Muralidhar had stated that “Judicial independence is not a privilege but a responsibility”.

This development also coincides with the hearing that is to resume today on an appeal filed by the SC registry aiming to thwart the decision of the Chief Information Commissioner (CIC). The CIC had earlier directed the SC to provide information to serial RTI activist, Subhash C. Agarwal, details pertaining to the appointment of three judges to the Supreme Court.

It must also be noted that amidst the entire RTI buzz, the SC judges had voluntarily listed details of their assets as well as of their kin in November last year.