Bid to unseat chief justice rejected

IMPEACHMENT MAY UNDERMINE JUDICIARY INDEPENDENCE, VICE-PRESIDENT WARNS

Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu yesterday rejected the unprecedented impeachment notice given by opposition parties led by the Congress against the Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra, saying it lacked substantial merit and the allegations were neither “tenable nor admissible”.

The vice-president in his order yesterday said the allegations emerging from the current case have a serious tendency of “undermining” the independence of the judiciary.

Naidu based his decision on the opinion of top legal and constitutional experts, including former secretary generals of Lok Sabha and other legal luminaries with whom he held extensive consultations.

He also considered the views of top legal and constitutional experts, including former chief justices and judges, before taking the decision, sources said.

Seven opposition parties led by the Congress had last week moved a notice before him for impeachment of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) on five grounds of “misbehaviour”.

Personal conversations

Leaders of the opposition parties had last Friday met Naidu and handed over the notice of impeachment against the CJI bearing signatures of 64 MPs and seven former members, who recently retired.

“I have considered the material contained in the Notice of Motion and reflected upon the inputs received in my interaction with legal luminaries and constitutional experts, I am of the firm opinion that the Notice of Motion does not deserve to be admitted,” Naidu said in the order rejecting the plea.

“I refuse to admit the Notice of Motion,” he said.

Naidu said he had detailed personal conversations on all aspects arising from the notice and had considered each of the allegations made in it individually as well as collectively.

“Clearly this is an internal matter to be resolved by the Supreme court itself. Going through the five allegations mentioned in the notice, I am of the view that they are neither tenable nor admissible,” he said in his order.

“The allegations emerging from the present case have a serious tendency of undermining the independence of judiciary which is the basic tenet of the Constitution of India.

The Rajya Sabha chairman said that after having perused annexures to the motion, detailed consultations and studied opinions of constitutional experts, he was “satisfied that admission of this Notice of Motion is neither desirable nor proper on any of these grounds”.