Lok Sabha Passes National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill Wednesday Aug 13,2014

The Lok Sabha on Wednesday Aug 13,2014 passed the Constitutional Amendment Bill to scrap the collegium system of appointing Supreme Court and High Court judges and cleared the National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2014 to regulate the procedure.

The National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2014, was passed by voice vote along with one official amendment. The members also passed the 99th Constitution Amendment Bill, which gives Constitutional status to the proposed Commission, with 367 voting in favour and no one against it. Members of the AIADMK abstained from voting. 

Since the Bill was put to manual voting, the process took a while as slips had to be distributed and then counted at every stage but members went through the motions patiently and in a spirit of across-the-floor camaraderie

The bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday after the Government withdrew the United Progress Alliance-drafted legislation from the Rajya Sabha earlier in the day. 

The discussion on the bill in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday saw most parties favour the setting up a Commission for judicial appointments, and thereby restore the balance of powers between the pillars of India’s democratic arrangement.