Pointing out that most members of the present Union Cabinet came of age during the JP movement of the mid-seventies when they also fought for restoration of the judiciary’s independence, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said this aspect was ``sacred and sacrosanct’’ for the National Democratic Alliance Government.
"We fought in the Emergency for three reasons - individual freedom, media freedom and independence of judiciary. In the seventies, the judiciary's independence was under severe threat. Therefore, we have suffered for the cause of the judiciary,’’ he said.
Interacting with news persons on the Communications and IT Ministry’s report card after the first 100 days, Mr. Prasad said he would not take questions on the Law & Justice Ministry which is also under his charge. But, he would make his views known on independence of the judiciary in the context of Chief Justice of India R M Lodha’s observation earlier in the day that efforts to take away judiciary's independence will not succeed.
The Minister said his observation about the Government’s highest regard for the judiciary was made with a ``deep sense of commitment and conviction’’ since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ministers such as Sushma Swaraj, Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitley and himself had participated in the JP movement and the subsequent declaration of emergency for three aims which included independence of the judiciary.
