New Delhi: Call for reforms in India’s judicial system, the All India Advocate Council (ABAP) ended the two -day conference of its national executive in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh last week, advocating more transparency in judicial appointments.
“The recent incidents in the higher judiciary have once again shocked the nation … while protecting the freedom of the judiciary, no one should lose the sight of accountability – not every person’s discretion but through a permanent system, which is transparent and verified,” ABAP said in a statement without giving details.
The implementation of the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) was also discussed at the conference held on April 12-13.
The NJAC, killed by the Supreme Court in 2015, was to change the existing collegium system to appoint judges in the High judiciary. It again became the center of discussion, as the cash was found to be at the residence of Justice Yashwant Verma, the High Court of Delhi, who was allegedly found to have a question, which questions transparency and judicial accountability.
Amidst a series of demands made by ABAP National in the statement, it “asked a new law to see that the process of appointment and judicial conduct is done in a more transparent manner, while to see that the judiciary would have to say a chief in the process”.
Established in 1992, ABAP, also known as the All India Advocate Council, is a right -wing legal organization, which includes experienced legal professionals associated with the President’s Swayam Sevak Union (RSS). It wants a change in the judicial system of India which reflects Hindu cultural and traditional values.
Most inclusive conference
Among its other demands, the organization pushed for an immediate installation of a permanent inspection committee, which included retired Chief Justice and other eminent jurists, to ensure judicial accountability and implemented the Bengaluru declaration in a solid, verification manner.
Representatives of every High Court in India attended the conference held on 12-13 April, making it one of the most inclusive meetings of ABAP.
Senior advocates, sitting and former law officials including additional Solicitor generals and former advocates, and former law officials participated in the discussion showing the increasing concern of the legal community on transparency, judicial integrity and structural reforms.
The ABAP also emphasized the requirement of the long -pending advocate Protection Act, 2021, which was aimed at protecting advocates from violence and other losses, and before June 2025, called from the Supreme Court to lift the existing sanctions on filing a complaint against the High judges of the higher judiciary before June 2025.
In another important resolution centered to prevent the conflict of interest, the ABAP demanded that the High Court judges be transferred if their close family members are practicing in the same jurisdiction, while the family members of the Supreme Court judges should not be allowed to practice in the top court until the judges retire.
On the issue of retirement after retirement, ABAP proposed a three-year cooling-bandage period, before the judges could accept cases of any government appointment or mediation. Additionally, the conference called for a uniform retirement age in the judiciary and urged that at least one-third of the High Court judges be drawn from outside their home states-during the tenure of former Chief Justice of India MN Venkaliah.
Moving forward for transparency, the conference demanded that the judges and their immediate families declare annually, these revelations made public public websites.
Apart from judicial reforms, the conference also took other legal concerns, especially the proposed amendments to the Motor Vehicles Act and legal recognition of religious certificates, especially halal certification, are calling for more and more investigations and clarity on such practices.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
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