In-house panel recommends removal of Allahabad HC judge SN Shukla J for involvement in medical college bribery case

Months after a former high court judge was slapped with corruption charges, skeletons continue to tumble out of the higher judiciary’s closet in relation to the medical college bribery case. Now, an in-house inquiry committee has recommended the removal of sitting Allahabad High Court judge, Justice SN Shukla..The committee, constituted by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, made some adverse remarks against Shukla J in its report, after it was found that he had made handwritten corrections to an order passed by his own bench, so as to allow a medical college in Lucknow permission to take admissions. According to news reports, Shukla had made corrections to an order passed on September 1, 2017 three days later, thereby allowing GCRG Institute of Medical Science to admit fresh students for the academic session 2017-18..Further, it was alleged that Shukla J had violated orders passed by the CJI Misra-led bench of the Supreme Court, which was hearing cases regarding opening of medical colleges..Indian Express reports that the in-house committee comprising Chief Justice of the Madras High Court Indira Banerjee, Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court SK Agnihotri and Madhya Pradesh High Court judge PK Jaiswal submitted its report to CJI Misra last weekend. This, after a non-judicial fact-finding inquiry was conducted, where Justice Shukla was given full opportunity to defend himself, but no examination or cross-examination of any witnesses was allowed. The report states that Justice Shukla had “disgraced the values of judicial life, acted in a manner unbecoming of a judge”, and lowered the “majesty, dignity and credibility of his office”..In September last year, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had framed corruption charges against former Allahabad and Orissa High Court judge IM Quddusi. The CBI’s FIR states that Quddusi was involved in an attempt to influence members of the higher judiciary in cases related to the opening of medical colleges..On September 6, a senior CBI official had reportedly approached CJI Misra, along with the evidence that the agency had, to seek his permission to file an FIR against Justice Shukla. However, CJI Misra apparently refused at that point of time, and the FIR named only Quddusi, middleman Vishwanath Agarwala and B P Yadav of the Prasad Education Trust, which owned one of the medical colleges..And now, after the committee’s findings, TOI reports that CJI Misra has advised Justice Shukla to either resign or take voluntary retirement. However, the High Court judge has refused either, and CJI Misra has reportedly asked Allahabad High Court Chief Justice DB Bhosale to withdraw judicial work from the judge. CJI Misra has also given the green signal for impeachment proceedings to be initiated against Shukla J..As per the Judges (inquiry) Act, 1968, a motion is required to be initiated in either House of Parliament. The motion is required to be signed by one hundred members of the Lok Sabha or fifty members of the Rajya Sabha. If the numbers add up, a three-member panel consisting of the Chief Justice or a judge of the Supreme Court, the Chief Justice of a High Court and a distinguished jurist in the opinion of the Chairman or Speaker will be constituted to probe the allegations against the judge..If the committee confirms the guilt of the judge, the issue will be tabled in the House of Parliament in which the initial motion is pending. If the motion is finally adopted by each House of Parliament, an address praying for the removal of the Judge shall be presented to the President of India..Justice Soumitra Sen of the Calcutta High Court was the last judge to face impeachment proceedings. However, he had resigned from his post before the motion was passed in the Lok Sabha..As regards Justice Shukla, the future does not seem too bright for the judge whose tenure is till 2020, now that the judiciary itself has condemned him..Only time will tell whether this puts to rest the controversy surrounding the medical college cases. Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms (CJAR) on its part, will not rest until an in-house inquiry is initiated against CJI Misra himself.