New Delhi: Chief Justice of India NV Ramana on Sunday expressed serious concern over the “growing tendency of disobeying and disrespecting court orders” of the executive and said that unless cooperation and assistance is received from both the executive and the legislature, Till then justice cannot be ensured to the people. Judiciary alone.
Justice Ramana observed that the High Courts have been mandated to ensure that executive decisions and legislation are in consonance with the Constitution and emphasized that the Constitutional Courts shall judge the validity of a decision by a government enjoying a popular majority over the Constitution. May not show any laxity while testing. test
Delivering the fifth L Venkateswaralu Endowment Lecture on ‘Indian Judiciary: Future Challenges’ at Siddhartha Law College in Vijayawada, the CJI said, “A popular majority is not a defense to arbitrary action taken by the government. Every action is essentially necessary to abide by the constitution. If the judiciary does not have the power of judicial review, then the functioning of democracy in this country would be unimaginable.
“The courts do not have the power of the purse or the sword. Court orders are good only when they are implemented. The rule of law in the nation requires the help and cooperation of the executive. However, there is a growing tendency for the executive to disobey and even show disrespect to the court orders,” the CJI said.
“One must remember that ensuring justice is not the responsibility of the judiciary alone. Unless the other two coordinating bodies make sincere efforts to fill judicial vacancies, appoint prosecutors, strengthen infrastructure and enact laws with clear foresight and stakeholder analysis, the judiciary alone cannot be held responsible.” They said.
Referring to the increasing number of physical attacks on judges and court premises, the CJI said, “At times, if the parties do not get a favorable order, campaigns are also launched against judges in print and social media. These attacks appear to be sponsored and synchronized. Law enforcing agencies, especially specialized agencies, need to deal effectively with such malicious attacks. It is unfortunate that the authorities usually do not proceed with the investigation until the court intervenes and passes an order.”
Justice Ramana stressed that it is an imperative duty of the government to create a safe and secure environment for the judges to work fearlessly. He said that fair and fearless functioning of judiciary is also adversely affected by media trial, which has become a trend these days.
“New media tools have the potential to expand wider but are unable to differentiate between right and wrong, good and bad and real and fake. Media cannot be a guiding factor in deciding trial cases,” he said. The CJI was concerned about a dysfunctional criminal justice system and said that the executive’s excessive control over public prosecutors was the main reason for its poor condition.
“The institution of public prosecutors needs to be liberated. They should be given complete independence and made accountable only to the courts. Historically, prosecutors in India have been under the control of the government. So it is no surprise That they do not act independently. They do nothing to prevent trivial and non-deserving cases from reaching the courts,” he said.
“Public prosecutors automatically oppose bail applications, without applying their minds freely. They try to suppress the evidence during trial which may benefit the accused. There is a need for a holistic re-work… PPs act as gatekeepers who ensure that the rights of citizens are not sacrificed and citizens are not harassed through malicious indictments,” They said.
The CJI also did not spare the investigating agencies and accused them of arbitrariness in the absence of any accountability. “There is no system of accountability for erroneous and highly delayed investigations. A person wrongly imprisoned due to false implication loses his right to liberty, property etc. He suffers a lot. There is no real remedy left for him and no compensation even after his acquittal,” he said.
Reiterating his demand for setting up of national and state judicial infrastructure authorities to improve the inadequate infrastructure in courts, the CJI also tried to dispel the perceived misconception about the collegium system, often referred to as judges-appointment. known as the system.
“Nowadays it is fashionable to repeat phrases like ‘the judges are appointing the judges themselves’. I consider this to be one of the widely publicized myths. The fact is that the judiciary is one of the many players involved in this process. Many authorities are involved. which includes the Union Law Ministries, State Governments, Governors, High Court Collegiums, Intelligence Bureau, and finally, the Supreme Executive, who have all been nominated to examine the suitability of the candidate. I am sorry to learn that That the knowledgeable also propagates the said belief. After all, this narrative suits certain sections,” Justice Ramana said.
He said that a study by the central government has shown that the governments account for 46% of the total cases pending in the courts.
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