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| CJI Misra impeachment: SC Constitution Bench dismisses Congress MPs' plea | | | Agencies
The five-member Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed as withdrawn the petition of two Congress members of Parliament challenging the decision of Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu, also the chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, to reject the Opposition’s notice for an impeachment motion against Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra.
According to Live Law on Twitter, the Constitution bench reserved the judgment on the powers of the 'master of roster', said Justice A K Sikri, the head of the five-judge Bench. “We do not have any doubt that the CJI is the master of the roster. But if the master of the roster exercises the power the way he wants, then the question arises, what should we do,” Sikri further added.
Senior Congress leader and advocate Kapil Sibal, appear for the petitioners, quoted S.145(3) of the Constitution and said a matter could be referred to the Constitution Bench by a reference order. “We want to know which Bench made the reference to Constitution Bench. Sibal read 145(3) where the court hearing an appeal consists of less than 5 judges and in the course of the hearing of the appeal the court is satisfied that the appeal involves a substantial question of law,” Live Law quoted Sibal as having said. “If you are not giving the order of constitution of Bench, how can I proceed, I am withdrawing the petition,” said Kapil Sibal.
Responding to the court developments, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy said Kapil Sibal and the Congress had a habit of punishing themselves. “This was always going to be the case," he said.
A five-judge Supreme Court Bench was hearing the petition of two Congress members of Parliament challenging the decision of M Venkaiah Naidu, Vice-President of India and chairman of the Rajya Sabha, to reject the Opposition's notice for an impeachment motion against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra. While Justice Chelameswar, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court was present during the hearing -- Senior Congress leader and advocate Kapil Sibal had requested for his presence on Monday -- Attorney General K K Venugopal was reportedly present in the courtroom during the Constitution Bench hearing, instead of the Cauvery water dispute, according to an India Today report.
Two Rajya Sabha members of the Congress party on Monday had moved the Supreme Court challenging the rejection of their impeachment notice against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, a five-judge Bench comprising Justices A K Sikri, S A Bobde, N V Ramana, Arun Mishra and A K Goel will on Tuesday hear their petition. The MPs have questioned Upper House Chairman and Vice-President of India M Venkaiah Naidu's decision to reject the party's notice for an impeachment motion against the CJI.
The Bar Association of India, a voluntary organisation of lawyers stated that "the notice for the impeachment of Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra was "unwarranted" and an assault on the judiciary".
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, also one of the signatories of the impeachment notice, mentioned the petition filed by two Members of Parliament -- Partap Singh Bajwa and Amee Yajnik -- for an urgent listing before a Bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar. Sibal said Rajya Sabha chairman M Venkaiah Naidu could not summarily reject the notice bearing signatures of 64 MPs and seven former members who had recently retired, on the ground that there was "no proved misbehaviour".
The SC Bench asked Sibal and advocate Prashant Bhushan to mention the matter before the Chief Justice of India for an urgent listing by citing a constitution Bench judgment on the powers of a "master of roster".
Impeachment notice's rejection raised "serious constitutional issues" and involved interpretation of constitutional provisions, said Sibal. |
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