Judicial Remedy

The legal fraternity all over the country, deeply shocked bythe case of J W Singh, the absconding additional sessions judge from Mumbai,ha...

The legal fraternity all over the country, deeply shocked bythe case of J W Singh, the absconding additional sessions judge from Mumbai,has been calling for the judiciary to weed out its black sheep. It is indeedan extraordinary case. It is not often one hears of judges being accused ofcriminal behaviour and Singh is in trouble on many counts. He is accused ythe police of corruption and abetment of crime.

He is also being investigated by a judicial board for setting free membersof the underworld in cases that he heard. Perhaps even more shocking thanthe discovery of black sheep in the judiciary is the fact that the alarmbells do not go off earlier. Why has it taken so long for anyone to find outwhat J W Singh was up to? What stopped his peers and seniors from blowingthe whistle when an illegal act was noticed? And this is a case allegedlynot of one illegal act but a whole pattern of illegal behaviour over manyyears.

Institutions can find ways of dealing with errant members. It is a differentmatter and a lot harder dealing with systemic failure which is what thereseems to be. The public has for good reason become fairly sceptical aboutthe way the justice system works. This is a tragedy. But the delays arescandalous and the frequent bias in favour of the rich and powerful evenmore so. And all that has more than a little to do with the quality of someof the individuals who preside over courts. There are weaknesses in theselection process and in supervision. Checks and balances are missing.

The country is crying out for reforms in the judiciary and should be heard.Too much time is spent by judges and politicians in debating the pros andcons of this or that change and too little time in setting things right.Every profession, for self-preservation8217;s sake as much as for the good ofsociety, designs ways of regulating itself and disciplining its members.

There is no reason why the judiciary should not evolve a betterself-regulatory system than exists at present. Justice is supposed to beblind meaning impartial; the judiciary is not supposed to be blind towrong-doers in its midst. The Bombay High Court needs to set up a committeeto recommend specific remedies against the persistent kind of wrong-doing JW Singh is accused of.