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http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=40507761800Reproduced from The Times of India January 20, 2009 Page 11
Delhi HC stays CIC order on SC judges’ assets
New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Monday stayed an order passed by the Central Information Commission (CIC) asking the Supreme Court’s information officer to give information to an RTI applicant on whether judges of the apex court have declared their assets to the CJI.On a petition filed by the CPIO of the SC challenging the January 6 order passed by the CIC, Justice S Ravindra Bhat appointed noted jurist Fali S Nariman as the amicus curiae to assist the court and fixed February 12 as the next date of hearing.
In the petition, the SC said that information relating to declaration of assets by the apex court judges to the CJI was not a mandatory exercise under the law. However, a full court resolution of the SC on may 7, 1997 required every judge to declare to the CJI assets including properties or any other investment in the name of their spouse and any person dependent on them. Objecting the CIC order, the petitioner said the order is excessive and without jurisdiction and the appeal made distinction between the apex court as an institution and the office of the CJI. “Neither is the office of CJI a public authority nor does the information relating to judges’ assets come in the public domain,” the supreme court said. On January 6, the CIC asked the SC registrar to provide info on whether the judges of the SC declare their assets to the CJI? AGENCIES
..................................................................Reproduced from The Times of India January 20, 2009 Page 14
SC challenges order on making assets of judges public
TIMES VIEW
Judges should disclose assets
In a strange turn of events, the Supreme Court has moved Delhi high court against a recent Central Information Commission (CIC) order on making assets of judges public. The apex court has challenged the order arguing that the information, which isn’t in the public domain, cannot be given to applicants under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
This is not a new controversy. An earlier RTI application enquiring whether Supreme Court judges were making a periodic declaration of their assets to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) — a practice that was adopted in 1997 — was returned by the court saying it had no information on this matter. A few days later, Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan said that his office was not bound by RTI since he was a constitutional authority. In its petition to Delhi high court, the apex court has said that declaration of assets by judges to the CJI is governed by an informal resolution and wasn’t mandatory under law. It also reiterated that the CJI was not a public authority under the RTI Act.
The response of the apex court is surprising since the CIC had merely asked whether Supreme Court judges were declaring their assets or not. If all government offices as well as the country’s elected representatives are subject to RTI, there is no reason why the judiciary should be an exception. If there has to be an exception for RTI, it should only be for information that affects national security.
The Supreme Court must be the most accountable institution in any democracy because of its role as a watchdog. Indeed, judges must be held to standards that are higher than other government officials. The apex court should be the first to embrace the ethics of transparency and voluntarily disclose assets of judges. There has been considerable controversy in recent times on corruption in the judiciary. It would be in the judiciary’s interest to quell such talk by disclosing assets of judges.
COUNTER VIEW
SC judges are above the fray
Naomi D’Souza
In a well-meaning but short-sighted move, the CIC has declared that Supreme Court judges must disclose their assets under the RTI Act. SC judges already provide the Chief Justice of India with a list of assets. As the CJI, Justice Balakrishnan, has already pointed out, there is no statute or law that insists that judges must disclose their assets. The document that they give to the CJI is given in trust, which Balakrishnan would be betraying if he were to make the document public.
Forcing judges to disclose details of their assets may have unintended consequences. While the measure would satisfy those who believe that the judiciary is tainted by corruption, the amount of information about the judges that will then become available in the public sphere is dangerous. Not only could some elements use the information to pressure certain judges into issuing favourable verdicts, it could also result in their personal safety being compromised. Far from checking judicial corruption, revealing assets could have just the opposite effect.
The judiciary in India is one of the few public institutions that people still trust, and with good reason. The Supreme Court, in particular, has emerged in the recent past as a defender of civil rights and has increasingly taken on an activist role. SC judges have proven themselves to be worthy of their office. They should not have to constantly prove themselves over and over again. Demanding a declaration of assets amounts to an expression of mistrust in the SC and its judges despite the stellar job they have been doing over the years.
If judges want to disclose their wealth under the RTI, they are free to do so. However, compelling them to make this information available to the public is unfair and will not have the desired result. It is best to have faith in these sentinels of the law and trust them to do their jobs without bias or influence.
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