The three-member committee, constituted by Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari, will meet here on Sunday to finalise the charge sheet to be given to the Chief Justice-designate of the Sikkim High Court, Justice P.D. Dinakaran, who faces removal proceedings in Parliament.
Highly placed sources told The Hindu that the meeting, to be held at the residence of the Chairperson, Justice V.S. Sirpurkar of the Supreme Court, would go through the charges formulated, and once approved, a proper charge sheet would be issued to Justice Dinakaran, probably at the next meeting.
The Chief Justice-designate of the Karnataka High Court, Justice J.S. Khehar, and senior advocate P.P. Rao are the other members of the committee.
The charges against Justice Dinakaran, as mentioned in the motion admitted in Parliament, are possessing wealth disproportionate to the known sources of his income; unlawfully securing five Housing Board plots in favour of his wife and two daughters; entering into transactions prohibited and punishable under the Benami Transaction (Prohibition) Act, 1988; and possessing agricultural holdings beyond the ceiling under the Tamil Nadu Land Reforms (Fixation of Ceiling on Land) Act, 1961; illegal encroachment on government and public property to deprive Dalits and the poor of their right to livelihood; violation of the human rights of Dalits and the poor; destruction of evidence during an official inquiry; obstructing public servant on duty; repeated undervaluation of property at the time of registration of sale to evade stamp duty; carrying out an illegal construction in breach of the Town Planning Law and the planning permit; and misuse of his official position to unlawfully secure property and facilitate other illegal acts for personal gain.
Justice Dinakaran is also facing the charge of passing dishonest judicial orders contrary to the settled principles of law to favour a few individuals or for his own unjust enrichment at the cost of the exchequer and the country's natural resources, and in matters where he had a personal and direct pecuniary interest to secure property for his family. The other charge is that he had constituted Benches and fixed rosters of judges to facilitate dishonest judicial decisions and made arbitrary and illegal appointments and transfers.
Meanwhile, the Chennai-based Forum for Judicial Accountability on Saturday sent a representation to Justice Sirpurkar and the two members to hear its objections on the constitution of the committee before taking any further step.
Objections
Forum convener R. Vaigai said the Rajya Sabha Chairman had set up the committee without addressing the objections raised by the Forum. Since the committee was going ahead with its proceedings without giving notice to the Forum, she requested that the Forum be put on notice, and its objections considered before further action was taken . It also wanted its request for participation in the proceedings allowed.
