‘Tribunalisation will weaken the power of courts, whether it’s SC or HC’: DPS Randhawa

As far as the protest is concerned, it is a very organised and well responsive demonstration. It is a little strict as it has not happened earlier in this manner. The aspect we are looking at is quite large and the issues are directly related to the constitution. Such forces want to weaken the constitution by enacting different laws under the shelter of commissions, tribunals and committees, just to dilute the power of courts. They directly encroach the judicial independence and inherent power of the courts. We are fighting for encroachment of the high court’s inherent power. Such culture of Tribunalisation will weaken the power of courts whether it’s the Supreme Court, the high courts or the subordinate courts. We think that the judiciary has to work independently. Earlier we were in talks with the Advocate General and relied upon him for a long time, but then we started looking for other options and managed to conduct a meeting with the Chief Minister in Delhi. The CM assured us that he will talk to the stake holders, employees and government officials, and I suggested him to involve the Bar council of the three states for a better solution.

The strike has badly affected the judicial functioning of a High Court with jurisdiction extending over two states and one Union Territory. Why is the Bar opposed to the decision of the Haryana government, which claims it will benefit its employees? What is the Bar’s response to the claim?

We think that like this if a new tribunal is formed for every issues, like a company law tribunal or a tax tribunal, then there will come a time that everything will be out of high court. It will be a white elephant and just a building. Likewise the government may one day also say that a special tribunal has been set up for dealing with drug cases. I would again ask to the government to strengthen the judiciary and not weaken it. If the government is planning to shutdown the high court through forming such tribunals, we are going to give a symbolic message through protest.

There has been a growing trend of creating tribunals by the Executive. How do you see it impacting the idea of judicial independence and freedom? Are the tribunals able to function as freely as say a high court judge?

The retired judges will not be made the executive members of judiciary at the tribunals, rather there will be serving judges to dispose the cases quickly. The judicial members of the tribunals are actually government employees who cannot do justice with the litigations of the state employees as they are taking salaries from the government. Either there should serving judges at the tribunals who are competent and not the retired judges or any retired IAS officials. Or acting high court judges can be given the work of tribunals along with the high court, so that the judiciary is able to maintain its independence and do justice to every litigation, even those relating to service matters.

Coming to the question of litigants again, they have been the ultimate sufferer of this indefinite protest. What do you have to say on it?

At large our fight is for the people, for the employees of Haryana and Punjab, due to which the litigants have been suffering and we feel bad about. But for the issue to be resolved, the government should talk to us and allow us to provide suggestions to help them deal with the matter.

The lawyers have taken over the space outside Gate number 1 of the High Court and incidents of harassment with litigants and staff have come to light. There has also been an incident of stopping media from covering the plight of the litigants. How is the Bar going to address these issues if it decides to continue until it achieves the goal?

Our message had been very clear and to the employees of the High Court and to the government; we will completely shutdown work as a symbolic message to the concerned authorities. Meanwhile, we have sealed all the gates from 1 to 5, where we had been asking the employees of the Court to show their ID cards to enter the premises.

What is the way out? Keeping aside the question of tribunal and with what aims the government has notified it, what is the Bar’s solution to the huge pendency at the High Court?

The judge who had been deputed at the new Haryana Administrative Tribunal, Justice Sneh Parashar, is a retired judge, and the authorities must look at the cases she has disposed. How many were service matters? What is the history of cases in which she had dealt with the service matters? Meanwhile, at present, there are three benches in the court which look after the service matters of Haryana, and if the three sitting judges are unable to clear the pendency of the service matter cases, then how will a single retired judge be able to dispose the pending cases of Haryana employees. Even if a separate Administrative Tribunal had to be set up, then at least a sitting judge should been made to look after the cases.