Moily reverses Bhardwaj: will push impeachment of Calcutta HC judge

“The first-ever impeachment of a judge and the Bill which will formalize the inquiry procedure for misdemeanors of judges will give a sense of direction to what we want to do. The right signal will come from these two moves,” Moily told The Indian Express on his first day in office.

On Justice Sen’s case,he said that given there’s no precedent,completion of the proceedings against the judge will “restore the credibility of the impeachment process.” And that he would soon take up the impeachment matter with Chairman of the Rajya Sabha (where it is pending).

In February,58 MPs,of all major parties except the Congress,signed and submitted a petition for Justice Sen’s impeachment to Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari,seeking his removal for financial misconduct.

The impeachment was recommended by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan through a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last August. But the first UPA sat on it,Bhardwaj even suggesting it wasn’t interested in taking it forward.

In his letter,the CJI had said that “the conduct of Justice Sen had brought disrepute to the high judicial office and dishonour to the institution of judiciary.”

The in-house committee,he said, found that Justice Sen,prior to his elevation to the bench,kept Rs 32 lakh — received by him as a court-appointed receiver — in his personal account.

On the Judges Inquiry Bill which will establish the National Judicial Council (NJC),Moily said he plans to put it as an agenda item in his 100-day plan.

“I am totally backing the move but only want to assure myself that nothing crucial has been left out in the draft,” he said.

Asked about changes in the UPA’s legal team led by the Attorney General,Moily said:”We are already at work on setting up the team. Consultations are on.”

Asked about the Government’s decision to take off Bofors-accused Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi from Interpol’s most wanted list,he said: “”No question of sorry. We will carry forward the decision made by Bhardwaj.”

Asked about disclosure of assets by judiciary,he said: “We will consult the judges,take them into confidence and amend the law,if necessary.”