On March 26, former Supreme Court judge L Nageshwara Rao attended a conference in Jerusalem amid ongoing massive protests against the proposed judicial overhaul in the country. During his speech at the conference, former justice Rao endorsed the Indian model of appointing judges. Notably, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju has pointed out several times that the collegium system to appoint judges needs an overhaul.
Former Supreme Court justices from Canada, India and Ireland together with constitutional law professors from Israel, Poland and Hungary at the demonstration in Jerusalem today, and discussing the Israeli government’s judicial reform plan tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/DSgVMZmCn4
— Halmai Gábor (@halmai_gabor) March 25, 2023
Speaking to the Indian Express after returning from the conference, former judge Rao said, “Even an ordinary citizen on the street was talking about the nuances of an ‘override clause’. This was democracy at work.”
In Israel, he was invited by the Israel Democracy Institute for a conference titled ‘No Other Democracy in the World – An Emergency Conference on Threats to Judicial Independence’. In his statement, he said, “I saw a march to the President’s residence of about 20,000 people. It was peaceful, with no violence at all. At the same time, I was told there was a crowd of over two lakh people marching in Tel Aviv.”
During the press statement at the conference, former Judge Rao said, “People should have confidence in the judges being efficient and not acting with fear or favour. The appointment of judges is an essential ingredient for upholding the independence of the judiciary. A robust mechanism for the appointment of judges is an imperative need for a civil society.”
Protests over Netanyahu’s proposed judicial overhaul, now taken back
Reportedly, Prime Minister Israel Benjamin Netanyahu proposed to overhaul the judiciary. However, following the protests, the plans have been postponed for now. Controversy and protests erupted over a Bill to change the composition of the nine-member committee that selects the judges for the Israeli Supreme Court. Currently, it comprises of minister of justice, another minister, two Supreme Court judges, the Supreme Court President, two representatives of the Bar and two Knesset members. On the contrary, the government in India has no say in the collegium to select judges for the High Courts and the Supreme court in the country.
Under the new proposal, PM Netanyahu proposed to have a 7-4 majority for the government-nominated members to select the judges. The Bill also proposed to expand the committee.
Former judge Rao noted the proposed reforms were in a very different context to what India has. He said, “Israel has an unwritten Constitution and a unicameral legislative body, the Knesset, but a deep history of separation of powers. Their Supreme Court is the arbiter of rights not written in a Constitution like ours. There are voices in Israel that look to the Indian model rather than to the West.”
Speaking on the status between the judiciary and the executive in India, he said he has a different view on the matter. “The judiciary is a counter-majoritarian force, and bonhomie between the court and the government is not a good thing for a citizen,” he added.
