The Allahabad High Court has sent a final list comprising of 31 names of the advocates to the Supreme Court Collegium recommending that they be elevated as judges of the High Court.
The Allahabad High Court has a sanctioned strength of 160 judges while the number of vacancies stands at 57 out of sanctioned strength of 160 judges. The 31 names recommended include 25 advocates from Allahabad while the rest of the advocates practice at the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court.
The criteria for appointment of a person as Judge of High Court are provided under Article 217 of Constitution. The criteria are:-
· Has for at least ten years held a judicial office in the territory of India; or
· Has for at least ten years been an advocate of a High Court or of two or more such Courts in succession.
Last year, the Supreme Court Collegium comprising of then CJI Ranjan Gogoi, Justice A.K. Sikri & Justice S.A. Bobde while considering the names of candidates for Allahabad High Court relaxed the mandatory criteria about “professional income” of some recommended candidates. Under the new relaxed system, the standard for prescribed minimum income limit of the candidates has to be less than Rs 7 lakh per year. This decision is a clear case of overreach by the collegium, especially since it flies in the face of all logic as well as settled law.
The Supreme Court collegium’s relaxation will be applicable only to “a reasonable extent in cases where such recommendees belong to categories of SC/ST/OBC or represent Government in their capacity as Standing /Panel Counsel before the Courts.”
The following is the list of names of the advocates who have been recommended:
- S.S.NIGAM.
- SANJAY OM.
- C. K.RAI.
- SHISHIR JAIN (Lucknow).
- SAMEER JAIN
- NIMAI DAS.
- KRISHNA PAHAL
- SUDEEP SETH (Lucknow).
- DURGESH KR SINGH.
- ASHUTOSH SRIVASTAVA
- S. VIDYARTHI (Lucknow).
- RENU MISHRA
- DR.SHIKHA SRIVASTAVA (Lucknow)
- BRIJ RAJ SINGH
- SHREE PRAKASH SINGH
- MANU KHARE.
- IMRAN ULLAH.
- VIKAS BUDHWAR.
- VIKRAM CHAUHAN.
- SHEETLA PRASAD.
- RISHAD MURTAZA (Lucknow).
- SUSHIL KUMAR SHUKLA.
- PRAFULLA KUMAR YADAV.
- DRUV MATHUR
- ARNAB BANERJI.
- PRABHAKAR AWASTHI.
- SAURABH SRIVASTAVA.
- VIMLENDRU TRIPATHI.
- RAMA GOEL BANSAL.
- AMIT CHAUDHARY (Lucknow).
- OM PRAKASH SHUKLA.
These names will be placed before the Supreme Court collegium which consists of three senior most judges of the Supreme Court who then shall deliberate on the names of the advocates along with the report of Intelligence Bureau on each candidate.
On approval by the Supreme Court Collegium the names of the proposed candidates will be sent to the Ministry of Law & Justice who will send the names to President of India. The President under his sign and seal would issue the warrant of appointment and thereafter it will be notified in Official Gazette by the Government by which the proposed candidates would be eligible for taking oath of office of judge of Allahabad High Court.
-India Legal Bureau