New Delhi, Jul. 31: India is taking strong and stalwart action against corruption. Taking strong action against this corruption in the system, CIJ comes with the unprecedented decision, to allowed CBI to file a case against Allahabad HC Judge Justice S.N. Shukla under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
As per the latest official report, the HC Judge Justice S.N. Shukla found ‘Guilty of Misconduct’, so that CJI took this decision.
Allahabad High court judge S N Shukla was found guilty of misconduct by an internal committee which was formed in January 2018.
An in-house panel had found Allahabad High Court Justice S N Shukla guilty of misconduct by an internal probe. Following this, the Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to initiate a motion for his removal.
As per the existing rules, a case cannot be filed against the sitting judge without the permission of the Chief Justice of India.
This is an unparalleled event, as for the first time since 1991 no investigating agency has ever probed a sitting HC judge.CJI Ranjan Gogoi has granted permission to CBI to lodge an FIR against a sitting judge.
A three-judge in-house committee, comprising Madras High Court Chief Justice Indira Banerjee, Sikkim High Court Chief Justice S K Agnihotri and Madhya Pradesh High Court's Justice PK Jaiswal, had in January 2018 concluded there was sufficient substance in the allegations contained in the complaint against Justice Shukla and that the aberrations were serious enough to call for initiation of proceedings for his removal.
Following the committee's report, the then CJI Dipak Misra, in accordance with the relevant in-house procedure, advised Justice Shukla to either resign or seek voluntary retirement forthwith. After he refused to do so, the then CJI had asked the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court to withdraw judicial work from him with immediate effect, after which he reportedly went on a long leave.
On Match 23, Justice Shukla wrote a letter to Gogoi which was forwarded by the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, requesting that he be allowed to discharge judicial work in the high court.
The committee appointed by the Rajya Sabha chairperson would examine the evidence and records, and opine if the same formed the basis for whether or not removal motion be debated in the Upper House.
Justice Shukla, who was heading a division bench in the high court, had allegedly defied the categorical restraint orders passed by a CJI-led bench of the apex court last year to permit private colleges to admit students for the 2017-18 academic session.
Two complaints, including one from the advocate general of the state, was received by the CJI on September 1, 2017, and the then CJI had constituted an in-house committee.
According to the inquiry committee report, Justice Shukla had "disgraced the values of judicial life, acted in a manner unbecoming of a judge", lowered the "majesty, dignity and credibility of his office" and acted in breach of his oath of office.