GHCAA demands notes of recommendation on Jayant Patel J transfer

The furore over the resignation of Justice Jayant Patel has far from died down. Now, the Gujarat High Court Advocates Association (GHCAA) has written letters to the Supreme Court and the High Courts of Karnataka and Allahabad seeking disclosure of the notes of recommendation made by the collegium pursuant to Patel J’s proposed transfer..In a bid to obtain some inkling of the collegium’s workings, three separate letters have been sent to the Registrars General of the above-mentioned courts..The letter to the Supreme Court Registrar General calls for the notes of recommendation of all the collegium members, as well as the notes of the Chief Justices of the High Courts of Karnataka and Allahabad regarding Justice Patel’s proposed transfer. The same letter also seeks to know whether Justice Patel was consulted before his transfer, since it was his second transfer from one high court to another..Apart from this, the GHCAA also seeks information on two judges of the Gujarat High Court – Justices RP Dholaria and KJ Thaker – who have been continuing as additional judges for four years without being made permanent. Further, the reasons for the non-transfer of the Delhi High Court’s Justice Valmiki Mehta and the Gujarat High Court’s MR Shah are also sought in the letter..The GHCAA plans to challenge the transfer of Justice Patel – who had resigned earlier this week – before the Supreme Court. The letters, signed by President Asim Pandya, state,.“It is absolutely necessary to obtain the aforesaid information since the Gujarat High Court Advocates’ Association is proposing to challenge the decisions of the Supreme Court Collegium to transfer Hon’ble Justice Jayant Patel, Judge Karnataka High Court to Allahabad High Court and/or raise larger issue of demanding full-fledged judicial review in such matters to avoid arbitrariness and abuse of power in the matter of transfer/elevation of a permanent judge of High Court and non-confirmation/extension of term as Additional Judge of a high Court judge….…Secrecy breeds corruption and therefore as long as the decision making process of the Supreme Court and High Court Collegium is not brought in public gaze the people of India are bound to suffer and the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution of India will stay simply a paper declaration only.”.Going by history, it seems very likely that the courts will dismiss the demands for information on collegium deliberations. The petition that is proposed to be filed in the Supreme Court will, in all likelihood, meet with a similar fate..Justice Patel’s resignation has, however, galvanised lawyers across the country. Following the GHCAA’s lead, Karnataka lawyers also protested the resignation. The Bar Council of India and the Supreme Court Bar Association have also condemned the treatment of Justice Patel, although they might not have agreed with Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave’s strong remarks earlier this week..Read the letter: