Stressing the need for transparency in appointment of judges to higher judiciary, former Madras High Court Judge K. Chandru said a permanent body was needed to ensure that.
Speaking at a seminar on ‘Appointment of Judges and Challenges’, organised by All India Lawyers Union here on Saturday, Mr. Chandru said any one could become a judge. But, a judge should be someone who strongly believed in, respected and valued the Constitution.
He said the appointment of the judges should be done in a cautious manner and only eligible persons should be appointed as there were challenges before and after the appointment of the judges.
He said even for the recruitment of a munsiff court judge, there was an elaborate procedure. There was an examination and it was followed by a verification process. However, after the person took the oath, what mattered was how that person discharged the duty.
Mr. Chandru pointed out that in the USA, the American Bar Association had prepared a model code of judicial conduct. He also presided over a discussion held on his autobiography ‘Nanum Nithipathi Aanen’. Advocates and students participated in the discussion.
Advocate Shaji Chellan said the All India Lawyers Union preferred a system like the National Judicial Appointments Commission to the collegium system for the appointment of the judges as it involved members like politicians and the civil society to have a say in the appointment of the judges to the higher judiciary.
