The Supreme Court Collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud, has reiterated its proposal to appoint Advocate R. John Sathyan as a judge of the Madras High Court, after the Central government rejected his name, citing an Intelligence Bureau (IB) report stating that he had shared an article that was critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
A statement issued by the Collegium, comprising Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice K.M. Joseph on Tuesday said that the IB report had stated that Sathyan had shared such an article published in The Quint, as well as another post portraying the suicide of a medical aspirant in 2017 as a ‘political betrayal’ and a ‘shame of India’.
The statement said the Intelligence Bureau had reported that Sathyan enjoyed a good personal and professional image and that nothing adverse had come to notice against his integrity.
The report further noted that the Advocate did not have any overt political leanings. In this backdrop, the adverse comments of the IB extracted above in respect of posts made by him regardiing sharing an article published in The Quint and another post regarding committing of suicide by a medical aspirant candidate in 2017 would not impinge on the suitability, character or integrity of Sathyan, added the statement.
Stating that Sathyan was fit and suitable for being appointed as a Judge of the Madras High Court, the Collegium reiterated its recommendation dated February 16, 2022 for appointment of the Advocate as a Judge of the Madras High Court.
All the consultee-Judges at the relevant time, including Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Justice Indira Banerjee, Justice V. Ramasubramanian and Justice M.M. Sundresh had found him suitable for elevation, it added.
It further recommended that Sathyan be given precedence in the matter of appointment as Judge over certain names separately recommended by this Collegium for appointment as Judges of the Madras High Court.