from: Ravindran P M <raviforjustice@gmail.com>
to: cji.office@sci.nic.in
cc: supremecourt@nic.in, registrarcc@yahoo.co.in
date: May 6, 2021, 10:36 AM
subject: 30 questions to the Chief Justice of India
I happened to go through a set of 10 questions that the apex court has asked the Union Government in the context of a pandemic that has struck the world like a bolt from the blue. It is an acknowledged fact that this government has done much better than even all the developed countries in the world in managing the situation for the last year plus. It is also evident, for a little better than casual observer like me, that over this period the Union Government has also taken the state governments along, guiding and providing all necessary help within the federal system under which we are given to believe that we are working. Of course some of these state governments have acted like renegades, causing avoidable loss of life and living to the masses.
Anyhow, I am not an advocate for the Union Government but an activist working for transparency and accountability in government, including our judiciary. In fact, my experiences, observations and studies have convinced me that it is the failure of the judiciary that has contributed in a major way for all that ills afflicting the governance of this democratic society, touted to be having rule of law and where citizens are the sovereign entities. So here are 30 questions (not exhaustive) that the judiciary needs to answer:
1. Who is responsible for the massive backlog of cases in our courts?
2. What is the relevance of judge to population ratio in the context of this piling up of cases?
3. Which of this is more rational: judge to population ratio or judge to docket ratio?
4. Which are the other countries in the world where judges appoint judges?
5. Which is the dictionary that defines consultation as the process where an expert gives an opinion and which opinion is held to be binding on the one who has sought the opinion?
6. Which are the countries where judges enjoy prolonged holidays?
7. Aren't there provisions in our Civil/Criminal Procedure Codes that limit the number of adjournments that can be given in any particular case and the circumstances under which they can be given?
8. If there are, are they being enforced and how?
9. If there aren't, why are they not being limited and enforced?
10. And who can limit them and enforce them?
11. If the Executive approves any legislation done by the appropriate authority will it be dismissed as interfering with the freedom of the judiciary?
12. What are the provisions for punishing judges as per laws applicable to other citizens?
13. If there are no laws to punish judges for corruption, misbehaviour etc shouldn't there be such laws and who is responsible for framing them?
14. Is impeachment a punishment?
15. If a judge is impeached, will s/he be entitled to any/all of the benefits that are provided on retirement?
16. What is the procedure adopted in our courts to assign priority to cases?
17. Why are some cases pending for decades and more when some are disposed of with considerable speed?
18. Who is responsible for the massive number of undertrials in our jails?
19. Has the judiciary instituted any process to identify the undertrials by nature of crime and prioritise the cases involving petty crimes and disposing them off at least before they complete, say, 10 percent of the term for which they will be punished, if convicted?
20. What is the procedure laid down to fulfil the task of the Central Authority under the The Legal Services Authorities
Act, 1987 as specified in Clause 4(n) of the said Act.
21. In the past one year, how much was the funds allotted/ expended for the functioning of the various bodies constituted under this Act?
22. In the past one year, how many poor litigants have benefitted by this Act? Benefit, in this context, applies only to those who have got ultimate final favourable decisions.
23. In any case, when the judges are expected to know the law and the litigants, the facts, what is the necessity of advocates as intermediaries between litigants and judges?
24. Renowned lawyer Fali S Nariman has said : 'For more years than I can imagine we lawyers have been using our lawyering skills not in a profession but in a game, in which the more skilful (which tends to become also the more costly), will invariably win.' So ultimately, aren't the poorer litigants the losers because they cannot afford the fees charged by the more competent lawyers?
25. Shouldn't the fee of lawyers be regulated only on the seriousness of the crime, or, in other words, based on the sections of the penal codes or other applicable laws under which the charges have been framed?
26. Is there any law that mandates lawyers to provide receipts for the fees charged by them from their clients?
27. As with the Direct Benefit Transfer, introduced by the Executive, in many cases, for transparency and accountability shouldn't the fees paid to lawyers be done electronically?
28. And, if a lawyer takes part payment electronically and part in cash, without providing any receipt, and if a litigant has to address this grievance and get relief, shouldn't there be a procedure which mandates that the lawyer should prove his innocence and not the litigant should prove his charge?
29. In this time of a pandemic, the Delhi Government has reportedly reserved 100 rooms in a five star hotel for the judges of the Delhi High Court. Is it ethically correct and morally acceptable?
30. There are High Courts demanding and getting post retirement perks from the respective states. Is it ethically correct and morally acceptable?
Here are the questions the Supreme Court bench asked the Centre:
> What is being done to provide treatment to healthcare professionals who are contacting Covid-19?
> How much investment has the Centre made into the vaccine companies and given advances in the last year? What has been the financial contribution by the Union govt in research etc in the development of vaccines?
> Can a mechanism be developed to show real-time updates regarding the allocation of oxygen?
> How will the Centre ensure registration for vaccines for illiterate people and those without internet access as registration through Co-Win is mandatory in the third phase of vaccination?
> Will one state get priority access over another in getting the vaccines?
> How will the Centre ensure equity by private vaccine manufacturers when it is buying only 50 per cent of the doses?
> Has the centre considered invoking Section 92 of the patents act and issue compulsory licenses so that drugs can be manufactured while the royalty is sorted?
> Has the testing labs been directed to track the mutant variant of Covid-19?
> How is the Centre trying to regulate hospital charges? Is there a national policy?
> Why are we paying so much for this vaccine which AstraZeneca is providing at a far lower price to the US citizens?
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