Why is it in the news?
- The recent endorsement by the President for the establishment of All-India Judicial Services (AIJS) emphasizes the importance of diverse representation in the judiciary.
- The focus is on identifying and nurturing legal talent from various regions of the country, ensuring a more inclusive and representative judicial system.
More about the news
- AIJS is a proposed judicial service in India, designed to streamline the recruitment process for judges at the level of additional district judges and district judges across all states. The AIJS explicitly excludes any post considered inferior to that of a District Judge.
- Article 312 of the Constitution provides the basis for establishing the AIJS, focusing on positions from the level of district judge and above. The intent is to create a centralized mechanism for the recruitment of judges.
- The 42nd Constitutional Amendment empowered the Parliament to create the AIJS, amending Article 312 (1) to facilitate this centralization.
- Currently, Article 233 involves the Governor in consultation with the High Court in the appointments, postings, and promotions of district judges.
| Need for AIJS
· There is a substantial number of vacancies in the lower judiciary, with over 5000 posts of judges remaining unfilled. · The majority of pending cases, nearly 85%, are at the District Judiciary level. Establishing AIJS aims to expedite case resolution. · AIJS is seen as a means to ensure that judges are selected from diverse sections of society, promoting inclusivity and representation in the higher judiciary.
Challenges in Implementation · Critics argue that allowing the executive to play a role in the judicial appointment process may compromise the principle of the separation of powers. · The centralized mechanism of AIJS might interfere with the appointment powers traditionally held by the High Courts, raising concerns about the federal structure of the judiciary. · The lower judiciary currently operates using local regional languages, and introducing a centralized system like AIJS may pose challenges related to the language preferences of different regions. |
