The IANS has reported that the Central Government has sought information from the Supreme Court and High Courts about judges who are airing their views on blogs and social networking sites such as Twitter. The Himachal Pradesh High Court has already received the communication from the Union Law Ministry.
The IANS has reported that the Central Government has sought information from the Supreme Court and High Courts about judges who are airing their views on blogs and social networking sites such as Twitter. The Himachal Pradesh High Court has already received the communication from the Union Law Ministry.
Confirming this, Chief Justice Kurian Joseph told IANS: "We have received a communication but we are collecting information in this regard."
The ministry's letter has sought the information from the Secretary-General of the Supreme Court and Registrar-Generals of High Courts. A Himachal Pradesh High Court official here said Chief Justice Joseph has directed the Registrar-General to circulate the ministry's letter among all the 11 judges for their comments on the issue.
The letter asks whether the High Court judges are airing their voice through blogs and Twitter. Whether it is not against the code of conduct of the judges? And if so, what preventive measures are being taken to check the trend?
Justice Shylendra Kumar of the Karnataka High Court and Justice Kannan of the Punjab & Haryana High Court were one of the first few judges who were famous for their blogs. In an editorial, Justice Shylendra Kumar on the issue of disclosure of assets had said “The Chief Justice (of India) cannot speak for the members of the judiciary unless they had confided in or authorised him to do so”. The then CJI K.G. Balakrishnan had said in his reply "He wants publicity and such a thing is not good for a judge. Judges should not be publicity-crazy".
In a separate incident, Justice Shylendra Kumar on his blog and also in a speech had apologized for Arundhati Roy’s conviction for contempt of the Supreme Court in the Narmada Bachao Andolan matter. “I, as a Judge, through this expression, offer my personal regret and apology to Ms. Arundhati Roy for the judicial tyranny let loose on her by the most improper use of the power to punish a person for committing contempt of court,” he added, clearly criticizing the Supreme Court’s action.
Justice K. Kannan of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, too had written on the Delhi High Court verdict, "CIC verdict directing the Supreme Court judges to declare their assets has found widespread approbation and the attempt of the Supreme Court to reverse the verdict by filing a writ petition before the Delhi High Court has drawn flak from many a quarter".
The decision of the Government will be keenly watched after it obtains the data relating to the blogging and tweeting judges. Will the Government impose a ban of members of the judiciary from tweeting and blogging? Should the Government ban Twitter and blog accounts for judges?
Comments
Guest
August 12, 2010 - 2:01pmit's none of the govt's bloody business if a judge has a twitter account. the govt should instead focus of cracking down on corrupt judges and lawyers. the present govt is a hotbed of corruption and is promoting corruption in the legal system.
PN
August 12, 2010 - 3:02pmBlogs and tweets are but a medium of expression. If there are no restrictions on judges writing articles in newspapers, contributing essays for books and delivering speeches in public, I fail to understand how blogging or tweeting can be construed to be objectionable. Furthermore, let's not forget that judges too have the have the right to freedom of speech and expression.Given the virtual absence of any other effective mode of ensuring judicial accountability, outspoken criticism of the judiciary (even from within the institution) can only be a good thing!
sahil
August 13, 2010 - 7:48ami dont see any wrong with judges having fb,tweeter etc accounts...... they have the right to speech & expression .it's none of the government which itself is so corrupt tip to bottom.all they need to check is that there are no corrupt judges in the system then to stop them from speakin the truth........... let the truth prevail
ASG
August 13, 2010 - 4:34pmA judge should be free to express his personal opinions, whether on blogs, twitter, etc. However, expressing any opinion which tarnishes the image or office of the judiciary, should not be allowed. For example, rendering a personal apology to Arundhati Roy is shameful and demeaning the brother judges who passed the contempt verdict. There is nothing as personal statements when made in public. A judge is a judge, as long as he is holding office, whether inside court or in public forums and he should, at all time, conduct himself in the dignity and manner as expected from a person holding a constitutional position.
Sushree Pholgu
September 10, 2010 - 2:05pmJudges definitely should be allowed to tweet..i mean this such an absurd idea..cant they express their opinion by any other means other than blogging etc.??of course they can..so what purpose does it achieve if they are restricted from tweeting? And as to what they write there and whether it is shameful and demeaning...well, they are judges after all..i\'m sure they know what they\'re doing.
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