Will clear 44 judges' names in 3 days: Centre to Supreme Court

The collegium system has become a major flashpoint between the Supreme Court and the central government, with the mechanism of judges appointing judges drawing criticism from different quarters.

New Delhi, Jan 06: Amidst the tug-of-war between the Supreme Court and the government over the collegium system and the appointment of the judges, the Centre on Friday assured the apex court that it will adhere to the timeline and probably clear the names of 44 judges in three days.

Hearing a petition on the delay in judges' appointment, the Supreme Court asked the government to clear the pending names as early as possible.

Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the government, informed the supreme court that out of the 104 recommendations made by the collegium of high courts, which are pending with the government, 44 are likely to be processed and sent to the Supreme Court by this weekend.

A bench of Justices S K Kaul and A S Oka also asked Venkataramani about the five names recommended by the collegium for elevation as judges of the apex court.

"Would your lordships defer this for a little while? I have some inputs given to me but I may have some difference of opinion on that," the Attorney General told the bench.

At the outset, Venkataramani told the bench that timeline laid down by the apex court should not be deviated from and all efforts are being made to conform to those timelines.

"Attorney General submits that he has instructions that the government will adhere to the timelines as provided in the judgement. It is towards that objective that he submits that out of the 104 recommendations made by the collegium of high courts pending with the government, 44 are likely to be processed and sent to the Supreme Court by the weekend," the bench noted.

The top court, which was hearing a matter relating to an alleged delay by the Centre in clearing the names recommended by the collegium for appointment as judges to constitutional courts, has posted the matter for further hearing on February 3.

The apex court collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, had last month recommended five judges, including Justices Pankaj Mithal and Sanjay Karol, the chief justices of high courts of Rajasthan and Patna, for elevation as judges of the apex court. The government expressed "strong reservations" about the recommended names as it sent back the files to the collegium for reconsideration.

The collegium system has become a major boiling point between the Supreme Court and the central government, with the mechanism of judges appointing judges drawing criticism from different quarters.