Judges' talks hit wall

Dipak Misra. File photo

R. Balaji, TT, Jan 18, 2018, New Delhi: The second round of talks between the Chief Justice of India and the next four senior judges hit an impasse on Thursday.

Chief Justice Dipak Misra is understood to hold that his administrative powers as "the master of the roster" cannot be diluted in any manner.

The issues raised by the four judges revolve around the allocation of cases, which is covered by the administrative powers of the CJI.

The roster is the list of cases prepared by the Supreme Court registry for the different benches. Although the list is computer-generated, the CJI has a certain degree of discretion in allocation. The four judges had earlier complained that senior judges had been ignored in the allocation of several key cases.

The second round of the meeting in the Supreme Court lasted around 20 minutes, following which the five judges dispersed to their respective courts for regular work.

The four judges are reported to have proposed an "in-house mechanism" in the form of a committee of senior-most judges who will determine the allocation of cases that have far-reaching consequences.

This view was reportedly turned down on the ground that established traditions could not be compromised.

The talks are expected to resume on Monday, especially since the CJI's power as the master of the roster had been upheld by a five-judge constitution bench in November last year.

The talks are unlikely to resume before Monday. Justice J. Chelameswar, one of the four senior judges, has left for Andhra Pradesh on a private visit and will be back on Sunday night or Monday morning.

The CJI is also said to be keen on consulting three other judges who are slated to be the top judge in the distant future. If the deadlock is not broken, a full court meeting may have to be convened.