SC has hijacked Constitution: Law Minister shares 'voice' of judge amid tussle with judiciary

In an interview on a Youtube channel retired Delhi High Court judge RS Sodhi explained why he believes that the collegium system through which judges are presently appointed is flawed. Law Minister Kiren Rijiju shared a clip of his interview on his Twitter handle.

New Delhi:In the ongoing tussle between the government and the judiciary over the appointment of judges, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday shared an interview of retired Delhi High Court judge RS Sodhi who said that though the judiciary is independent, the appointment process is such that the top court itself has hijacked the Constitution instead of protecting the law of the land.

"Voice of a Judge... Real beauty of Indian Democracy is- it's success. People rule themselves through their representatives. Elected representatives represent the interests of the people and make laws. Our Judiciary is independent and our Constitution is Supreme," Kiren Rijiju wrote on Twitter subscribing to the views of the retired judge.

The Law Minister further explained that the majority of people in India have similar 'sane' views about the Collegium system. "It's only those people who disregard the provisions of the Constitution and mandate of the people think that they are above the Constitution of India," he charged in an apparent attack at the judiciary.

Retired Delhi High Court judge RS Sodhi explained why he feels that the collegium system is flawed. High courts are not subservient to the Supreme Court, he said adding that the present system of judicial appointment is such that the high court judges start considering themselves subservient to the Supreme Court.

Last week the judiciary made public the reasons stated by the central government for not appointing a judge for his sexual orientation as well as expressing views critical of the government. The Narendra Modi government has been pushing for greater government representation in the appointment of judges. Recently Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar expressed similar views about the judicial appointment process while speaking at the Rajya Sabha. The opposition has described it as 'unprecedented' and an all-out attack on the judiciary.