Constituting benches is chief justice’s prerogative

The Supreme Court yesterday said that it was the “prerogative” of the Chief Justice of India to constitute the benches and allocate cases and that authority can’t be regulated on the mere apprehension of being exercised arbitrarily.

Holding that in the allocation of cases and the constitution of benches, the Chief Justice has exclusive prerogative, the bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud said: “... such an entrustment of functions is necessary for the efficient transaction of the administrative and judicial work of the court”. “There cannot be a presumption of mistrust. The oath of office demands nothing less,” said the ruling rejecting a PIL for framing of rules for regulating the constitution of benches and allocation of cases.

The constitution of benches “lies exclusively in the domain of the prerogative powers of the Chief Justice” and anything that curtails the authority of the Chief Justice, the judgement said, “would intrude into the exclusive duty and authority of the Chief Justice to constitute benches and to allocate cases to them”.

Speaking for the bench, Justice Chandrachud noted: “As a repository of constitutional trust, the Chief Justice is an institution in himself. The authority which is conferred upon the Chief Justice, it must be remembered, is vested in a high constitutional functionary.”

The court said this while rejecting a PIL by advocate Asok Pande seeking the framing of rules under which a three-judge Bench in the court of the Chief Justice must consist of the Chief Justice and his two senior-most colleagues alone, while the Constitution Bench should consist of five senior-most judges or three senior-most and two junior-most judges.