Supreme Court refuses to register plea against Collegium system

New Delhi: The Supreme Court's Registry has refused to register a writ petition questioning the Collegium system of appointment of judges in High Courts and the top court for the issue has already been settled in Constitution bench judgement in 2016 in National Judicial Appointment Commission Act, 2014.

The SC registry declined to institute the plea by advocate Mathews J Nedumpara and others, saying it appears that the present petition has been filed in order to over-reach the principles of settled law or with some ulterior motive.

The petitioners contended that the Collegium System of appointment of judges has resulted in the denial of equal opportunity for the petitioners and thousands of lawyers. They sought a mechanism in place of the Collegium and reconsideration on the striking down of the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014.

The prayers as have been sought for have already been covered in the judgment of October 16, 2015, which is a judgment in rem and the present petition, in one manner or the other replicates the issues as have already been put to rest, SC Registrar (J-A) Puneet Sehgal said in an order of April 24.

He also said in order to prevent needless waste of judicial time and energy, it is critical to ensure litigants do not overburden courts with the matters already stands adjudicated.

"Additionally, the repeated litigation of an already adjudicated matter is generally not in the public's best interest. The principle of res-judicata bars the invoking of provisions of law as sought by the petitioner," the order said.

The Registrar also concluded by virtue of the present petition, the petitioners under the garb of original jurisdiction are seeking review of the judgment by the five judge Constitution bench of October 16, 2015 remedy of which has already been exhausted in review petition of 2018, which cannot be legally permitted to be re-agitated again.

Moreover, once the court has been pleased to settle down a law, it cannot be allowed to be reopened by invoking civil original jurisdiction of this Court, he said.

The petitioners claimed the prevailing Collegium System was not effective for maintaining and procuring records of administrative functions in higher judiciary nor it is effective so as to apprise the general public about the candidates who have been appointed to Supreme Court.

They also alleged that there was no fixed criteria and procedure for appointment of judges.

They claimed the Collegium system resulted in denial of fair opportunity. They also maintained the Constitution 99th Amendment Act and NJAC Act were will of people in a matter which fell in legislative and executive domain and was not justiciable.