SC Judge expresses concern against 5 Member collegium’s choice, writes to CJI

New Delhi: Recommending the name of a High Court Judge to be appointed in Supreme Court by the five-member collegium including CJI Ranjan Gogoi has yet again divided the top court’s Judges with Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul expressing his dissatisfaction over the collegium’s decision.

Supreme Court judge, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, has written to the Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi, against the elevation of Justice Sanjeev Khanna of Delhi High Court to the top court, India today reports.

The decision of elevating Justice Khanna to the top court was made by the five-member collegium of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi and four other senior-most judges — justices AK Sikri, SA Bobde, NV Ramana and Arun Mishra.

The collegium has also recommended the name of Karnataka High Court Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari besides Justice Khanna.

In his letter, Justice Kaul said Justice Nandrajog is an “able judge and administrator”, the decision to elevate Justice Khanna would create problems in the bar and disquiet among the judiciary.

“Justice Khanna could have waited for elevation and there was no need to hurry the decision,” he wrote.

Meanwhile former Delhi High Court judge, Justice Kailash Gambhir has also written to President Ram Nath Kovind seeking his intervention following collegium’s decision to recommend the elevation of Justice Sanjeev Khanna to the top court by superseding 32 other judges of various high courts.

Justice Kailash Gambhir said the collegium’s January 10 decision to recommend Justice Sanjeev Khanna, a Delhi High Court judge, was “appalling and outrageous”.