Growing rift between Centre, apex court

The Centre has deliberately delayed the process of judicial appointments by returning 20 files related to the appointment of high court judges, nine of which were reiterations, back to the Supreme Court collegium over differences. The government has expressed strong reservation over the names of the recommended judges even though there is a huge backlog of cases in the high courts and apex court.

One of the recommended names include that of Sourabh Kirpal, who has spoken out about his homosexuality. The apex court has postponed his name thrice. Not only is this indicative of the Centre’s homophobia but is also a sign of the growing rift between the Supreme Court and the government. Prateek Sachdeva Mohali