Khushi Doshi
Published on: March 22, 2022 at 12:21 IST
The Kerala High Court recently affirmed a Single Bench ruling dismissing Petitions seeking the creation of an In-house committee to investigate claims of Judicial Misconduct against two Judges.
The Bench of Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Mohammad Nias CP stated that an internal investigation is not a law and that a Petitioner cannot seek its enforcement.
According to the Bench, it is up to the Chief Justice to decide whether the in-house proceedings against a Judge should be begun.
In the current Case, the Petitioner filed two Writs requesting the formation of an in-house committee to investigate the alleged Judge misconduct that was reported to the Registry in June of 2021.
However, the Court rejected the Case as unconstitutional.
The main issue before the High Court in the Appeal was whether a litigant who was dissatisfied with the decision and believed that the decision was not in his favour due to the misconduct of the Judge could approach the Chief Justice seeking a mandamus invoking the in-house procedure against the said Judge.
The Court said at the start that High Court and Apex Court justices can only be dismissed if misbehaviour is established or due to incompetence, as specified in Article 217 or 124 of the Judges (inquiry) Act, 1968.
As a result, the Court denied the request, stating that because no additional processes or disciplinary inquiries are contemplated under any statute or in the Constitution, a Plaintiff cannot approach the Court demanding an in-house procedure/inquiry against the Judge.
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