NJAC Has Component Of Hit And Trial, Says Government

At this, the court asked him to give it the names of the people who were "good" and were recommended for appointment to higher judiciary by the government but were not accepted by the collegium.

"Show us one incident, where there was a good material (name recommended). You (government) projected that material and sent it to collegium and it was returned," it said.

Justice Kurian once again asked Rohatgi to furnish the list of the people recommended by the Collegium for appointment but returned by the government for reconsideration and the collegium again reiterated the names.

Its query came while addressing the contention that under the collegium system - also known as judges appointing judges - the government has no voice and there was give and take amongst the judges involving "you scratch my back, I will scratch yours" in a closed room without sunlight.

Referring to an instance where after receiving a positive report on the credentials of a person recommended for appointment as judge by the collegium, the government sought another report from the Intelligence Bureau, the court asked: "What is the question or the occasion (for the government) to ask for the second opinion (of the IB)... we want to know the working of the system."

"It is a question of the working of a system," the court told the Attorney General as he reiterated his submission that "once a new system (for judges` appointment) comes, it is not in the provinces of the judiciary to decide on its validity on the basis of comparison with other models (collegium system)".

The court is hearing a batch of petitions including one by the Supreme Court Advocates on Record Association (SCAORA) along with the Bar Association of India, NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation and others challenging the constitutional validity of the constitution`s Ninety Nine Amendment Act, 2014 and NJAC Act, 2014.

The Attorney General will continue with his arguments.

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