Govt clears SC Collegium's recommendation to appoint 5 new judges; oath-taking on Monday

In a development that is likely to put at rest, at least for now, the tensions between the judiciary and the executive, the central government Saturday cleared the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendation to appoint five new judges to the apex court.

New Delhi:The central government Saturday cleared the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendation to appoint five new judges to the apex court. They include Justice Pankaj Mithal (Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court), Justice Sanjay Karol (Chief Justice of Patna High Court), Justice P. V. Sanjay Kumar (Chief Justice of Manipur High Court), Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah (Judge, Patna High Court), and Justice Manoj Misra (Judge, Allahabad High Court).

The five new judges will take the oath of office on February 6, news agency PTI reported quoting sources. The collegium headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud had recommended the names on December 13. With the new appointments, the working strength of the Supreme Court has increased to 32.

On the appointment, Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju extended the best wishes to all newly appointed judges. He shared the list on Twitter and wrote: "As per the provisions under the Constitution of India, the President of India has appointed the following Chief Justices and Judges of the High Courts as Judges of the Supreme Court. I extend best wishes to all of them."

The approval comes a day after the Supreme Court had warned the central government of taking judicial and administrative action that would not be palatable if it keeps on delaying the judicial appointments recommended by the collegium.

"We have put to the learned Attorney General that any delay in transfers may result in admin and judicial actions which may not be palatable," the court had remarked on Friday. The bench comprising Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Abhay S Oka was hearing a matter pertaining to judicial appointments.

On earlier occasions as well, the apex court had expressed its displeasure over the central government sitting over names and not processing them for appointments. It had condemned the government for remarks against the collegium, not processing the names for appointments, and not following the law laid down regarding appointments.