The controversy surrounding the Supreme Court judgeship of the former Solicitor-General, Gopal Subramanium, refused to die down as the Congress on Wednesday curdled the issue, charging the Narendra Modi government with lacking respect for the judiciary’s independence and impartiality.
The party accused the government of having a “prejudice” against Mr. Subramanium.
Highlighting the swiftness with which Mr. Subramanium’s name was segregated from those selected for appointment as judges of the Supreme Court, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said: “The government action speaks of nothing except prejudice….and the politics of vendetta.”
Mr. Subramanium was paying the price for being the amicus curiae in an alleged fake encounter case that took place during Mr. Modi’s tenure as the Gujarat Chief Minister.
“This is a serious assault on the independence of the judiciary; the mess created by the government has extremely serious ramifications,” Mr. Singhvi said, stressing that “Gopal Subramanium saved the government from embarrassment by withdrawing his name from the nomination list. Reacting to the CJI’s remarks on Tuesday slamming the government’s decision, Mr. Moily said the Centre’s decision had shocked the judicial fraternity.
“The government is entering into a danger zone of confrontation. The anguish on the part of the CJI is justified. The process of appointment of judges has been well-tested and it cannot be challenged,” Mr. Moily said.
“If the NDA government intends to uphold the independence of the judiciary, the Prime Minister should tender an apology to the CJI and restore the sanctity of the decision of the collegium by accepting Mr. Subramanium’s name,” Mr. Moily said.
