Ram Jethmalani, lawyer and Rajya Sabha member, has criticised the Centre, for not doing anything about the rotting foodgrains, till the Supreme Court raised the issue.
Talking to journalists, he said: “The order issued by the Supreme Court [about free distribution of food grains to the poor] is indicative of the common sense, compassion, humanity and concern for the poor of the country.”
“Why couldn't the government think of it,” he asked.
On the Kashmir issue, Mr. Jethmalani accused hardline Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani of instigating people to violence.
He chided the media for not asking questions on issues of national importance. “Why don't you [the media] ask when is the process of extraditing Anderson [Warren Anderson, former chairperson of the Union Carbide] going to begin?”
He said the people had the right to know why Union Carbide gave only $475 million against the original claim of $3.3 billion. “It is not even one-seventh of the originally claimed amount,” he said.
He expressed concern over the widespread corruption in the Indian judicial system and emphasised the need to form a judicial commission for the appointment of judges. “The impeachment process must go as it is useless,” he said emphasising that the formation of a judicial commission was a must to begin wholesome changes in the judiciary.
“Nine out of 12 charges were proved against the then Justice Ramaswamy of the Supreme Court a few years ago, but the impeachment procedure did not oust him;”
He said that there was a need to drastically change the process of the appointment of the judges. “We should learn from the scrutiny that the judges in the United States of America undergo before being appointed. We need a judicial commission.”
He said the commission must consist of representatives from six fields: representative of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) or the CJI himself, representative of the government of the day, leader of the opposition, the Bar Council's recognised leaders, members of the academic world and members from the world of social sciences.
Talking about the importance of an impartial judiciary, Mr. Jethmalani said the role of the judiciary becomes more prominent in a democratic republic. “India is not a democracy. She is a democratic republic. The people are supreme in a democracy, whereas the individual is sacrosanct in a democratic republic.” He said the judges become the guardians of individual rights in such a system.
