TIL Desk/National/New Delhi/ The Supreme Court has decided to examine a plea challenging the existing roster system and powers of the Chief Justice of India to allocate cases but prima facie observed the task cannot be entrusted to the members of the collegium. The court at the same time asserted that the CJI’s position as ‘master of roster’ cannot be ‘disputed’.
It prime facie did not agree with contention of former Law Minister Shanti Bhushan, who has filed the public interest litigation, that the collegium of five-senior most judges should be entrusted with the task of allocating cases and asked Attorney General K K Venugopal to assist the court in the matter.
A bench comprising justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan also took strong exception to an attempt to rake up the issue of the unprecedented January 12 press conference by four seniormost top court judges — J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, M B Lokur and Kurian Joseph — who had accused CJI Dipak Misra of arbitrarily allocating cases.
“We are not going to go into it. We are not concerned with it for many reasons and obvious reasons. Do not say all this. Do not bring it here,” the bench told senior advocate Dushyant Dave, who was representing Bhushan. “Prima facie, I do not think that the collegium should be entrusted with the task of allocating cases. You can come out with suggestions,” Justice Sikri observed.
