Justice Shekhar Yadav appears before SC Collegium; explains his position on remarks at VHP event

Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav of the Allahabad High Court – who hit national headlines after allegedly making certain objectionable remarks against Muslims at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) event—appeared before the Supreme Court Collegium on Tuesday to explain his position.

Justice Yadav appeared before the Collegium, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, which asked him to clarify his controversial statement that has not gone down well with the judicial fraternity, sources said. However, the future course of action was not clear at this juncture, they added.

Taking note of Justice Yadav’s controversial speech at a VHP Legal Cell event in Allahabad in which he allegedly endorsed the Uniform Civil Code and made certain remarks against Muslims, the Supreme Court had on December 10 called for details from the high court.

Justice Yadav’s Tuesday’s meeting took place after the Supreme Court received the details sought by it on his remarks from the Allahabad High Court.

As many as 55 opposition MPs in the Rajya Sabha have given a notice as provided for under the Judges Inquiry Act, 1968, for moving a motion to remove Justice Yadav as a judge for his alleged misconduct.

In a purported video of his speech widely circulated on social media, Justice Yadav can be seen saying that the law should work according to the majority.

Alleging breach of judicial ethics and constitutional principles of impartiality and secularism by Justice Yadav, Supreme Court lawyer and convener of the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms Prashant Bhushan had written to CJI Khanna seeking an “in-house inquiry” into his conduct.

Condemning Justice Yadav’s remarks, the Bar Association of India had called upon him to retract his statements and tender an apology. It had also urged the CJI and other SC judges to deal with this issue in a stern and emphatic manner.

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar – who is also the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha—can either admit or refuse to admit the motion for removal of a judge.

However, if he admits the motion, a three-member committee comprising a Supreme Court judge, a high court chief justice and a distinguished jurist will be constituted to probe the complaint, and determine whether a case is made out to initiate the process for removal of the judge in question.

In case such a committee is set up and finds the guilty of “misbehaviour or incapacity”, the motion for his removal will be taken up for consideration and debated in Parliament.

To remove a judge from office, the motion has to be adopted by each House by a majority of the total membership of that House and a majority of at least two-thirds of the members of that House present and voting. After the motion is adopted in both the Houses, it’s sent in the same session to the president, who will issue an order for removal of the judge.