500 judges should have been working, but they are not: CJI Thakur

He said at a function that there are around 500 vancancies in the High Court.

New Delhi, Nov 26: Chief Justice of India T S Thakur criticised the government on Saturday for not filling up the vacancies in the judiciary. He said at a function that there are around 500 vancancies in the High Court.

500 HC judges should be working today, but they are not he said. He said that appointments had been made. There are 121 appointments, but large number of proposals are still pending and we hope the government attends to it, the CJI also said.

Justice Thakur further went on to add that the armed forces appellate tribunal and the competition commission is without a chairman. Posts are falling vacant and I am pain persuading my colleagues who are remitting office to accept these appointments, the CJI further said.

''I have in the past written to the government stating that unless the rules are amended the problem will not be solved. I had said that the Chief Justices of High Courts too should be made eligible for appointments in the tribunals. There may be a situation where an SC judge may not be available to head these tribunals,'' Justice Thakur also said.

Union Minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad however said that he respectfully disagrees with the CJI had said. Prasad said that this year 120 judges were appointed.

OneIndia News