The Supreme Court raised concerns regarding the delayed completion of the district judges’ recruitment process in Madhya Pradesh. The court directed the high court to develop and release a schedule outlining the stages from the preliminary examination to the final selection results.
A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra issued various directives while hearing a 2006 petition related to the enhancement of judicial infrastructure, including the filling of vacancies in the lower judiciary nationwide.
The Apex Court dealt with the issues pertaining to judicial infrastructure and lower judiciary vacancies in Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana. The court reviewed a report by senior advocate Vijay Hansaria, who, along with lawyer Sneha Kalita, is assisting the bench as an amicus. They questioned the delay in the recruitment process, particularly for the 21 additional district judge positions. The court inquired why, if these vacancies were advertised in August, the preliminary examination was scheduled for December 3, 2023.
Chief Justice Chandrachud asked, “Why this delay of over two months?” The court pointed out that more than two months had passed since the advertisement was published before the examination date was notified. The Supreme Court urged the high court to establish a clear schedule in the advertisement itself and instructed the high court registry to ensure that the schedule includes deadlines for answer sheet assessments, result announcements, interview dates, and the publication of the selected candidates’ list.
The Supreme Court also issued directives to expedite the recruitment process for civil judges in both the junior and senior divisions in Madhya Pradesh. Additionally, the court addressed the issue of inadequate infrastructure in trial courts in Madhya Pradesh and instructed lawyer Arjun Garg, representing the high court, to meet with the state chief secretary, the Registrar General, and the law secretary. A report on this matter is to be filed by December 7.
Similar orders were issued for Punjab, which is also facing infrastructure challenges in its trial courts.
Previously, the Supreme Court had recognized the urgent need to fill 275 vacancies for junior civil judge positions in Haryana and directed the state to take necessary steps to conduct the recruitment. The court specified that the recruitment should be overseen by a committee comprising three judges from the Punjab and Haryana High Court nominated by the chief justice, the state’s chief secretary, the Advocate General of Haryana, and the chairperson of the Haryana Public Service Commission.
