Judiciel Standards and Accountability Bill

The Union Cabinet’s nod for the introduction of the Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill in the coming winter session of the Parliament is laudable. The majesty and sanctity of the judiciary rest on the respect and confidence it enjoys among the people. The Bill provides for provisions for declaration of assets and liabilities of judges of higher judiciary, and a mechanism to tame the judicial indiscipline and corruption even at the instance of an ordinary private person. To weed out frivolous complaints, a scrutiny committee is envisaged to examine the authenticity of the complaint. Only thereafter, a broad based judicial oversight committee will look into the complaint, and take/recommend suitable action against errant judge. Hence, the Bill is a fine blend of judicial accountability, transparency and independence.
However, in the Bill, the Higher Judiciary including the office of the CJI should specifically be made amenable to the command of the RTI. Moreover, the proposed Scrutiny Committee and Judicial Oversight Committee should also be involved along with the present Supreme Court Collegium (that practically makes appointments and transfers of the judges in higher judiciary) in effecting judicial appointments and transfer in the higher judiciary.