Opposition makes renewed efforts to ‘remove’ CJI Misra

Some MPS support move, Cong divided

NEW DELHI: Several Opposition leaders intensified their efforts to arrive at a common position to give a notice for a motion for the removal of the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, leaders of several political parties said on Tuesday. A Rajya Sabha MP said that he and a number of others had signed a petition in this regard.

At the same time, however, there also appeared to be differences within the Opposition ranks — including within the Congress — on how to proceed on the motion. The Opposition does not have the numbers to remove the CJI even if all other requirements of a complex constitutional process are met. The proposal had been initially mooted after four Supreme Court judges spoke out against the CJI’S use of his position as the master of the roster in January.

Majeed Memon, a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MP, said: “Several Opposition MPS, including me, have signed the petition to remove the Chief Justice.”

On Tuesday, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee met Prashant Bhushan, senior advocate and leader of the Swaraj Abhiyan party, who has taken a strong public position against the CJI. The two, a Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader confirmed, focused exclusively on the possible motion to remove Misra, with Bhushan making a strong case for it to Banerjee. Bhushan was not available for comments.

A draft explanatory note -with five specific charges against the CJI -- was doing the rounds on Tuesday evening among opposition MPS in Delhi. HT could not independently confirm the origin or veracity of the note.

A top Opposition leader, who is a key figure in pushing the motion, said, “I can tell you that we are seriously considering the move. We have discussed this with Congress as well as a set of regional parties.”