Challenging decision of collegium to elevate three judges to HP HC, A judicial officer moves SC
Shimla/New Delhi, June 17
A judicial officer from Himachal Pradesh has approached the Supreme Court challenging the recent recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium for elevation of three judicial officers as judges of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, alleging that officers junior to him have been preferred over his candidature.
The petition has been filed by Arvind Malhotra, Principal Judge, Family Court, Dharamshala, who has questioned the recommendation of judicial officers Chirag Bhanu Singh, Bhupesh Sharma and Yogesh Jaswal for appointment as judges of the High Court.
The Supreme Court Collegium, in its meeting held on June 2, had approved the names of the three officers and the recommendation was made public on June 3. The proposal has since been forwarded to the Central Government for further action.
When the matter was mentioned before a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice V. Mohan for urgent listing, counsel for the petitioner submitted that Malhotra’s right to fair consideration had been violated as officers junior to him had been recommended for elevation. Taking note of the submission, the Chief Justice agreed to list the matter for hearing.
The challenge assumes significance as it is the second such dispute relating to appointments to the Himachal Pradesh High Court in recent years.
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In 2024, two district judges serving in Himachal Pradesh had approached the Supreme Court alleging that their merit and seniority had been overlooked by the High Court Collegium while recommending names for elevation.
The apex court had allowed the petition in September 2024 and requested the Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court to reconsider their cases.
One of those petitioners, Chirag Bhanu Singh, is among the three officers whose names have now been cleared by the Supreme Court Collegium for appointment as judges of the Himachal Pradesh High Court.
The latest petition is expected to reopen the debate over transparency and criteria adopted in the process of judicial appointments.
You can add the following concluding paragraph:
The controversy has emerged at a time when the Himachal Pradesh High Court is functioning with five vacancies in the sanctioned strength of judges. Of these, three vacancies are expected to be filled from the judicial service quota and two from the Bar. While the Supreme Court Collegium has cleared the names of three judicial officers—Chirag Bhanu Singh, Bhupesh Sharma and Yogesh Jaswal—for elevation, it has so far not approved any name from the advocates’ quota. Earlier, the Himachal Pradesh High Court Collegium had recommended the names of senior advocates Anshul Bansal, Sunita Sharma and Peeyush Verma for appointment as judges of the High Court. However, the Supreme Court Collegium has not yet made any recommendation on their candidature, leaving the two vacancies earmarked for members of the Bar unfilled.
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