To what extent do you agree with the view that the flaws in judicial appointments procedure are key reason behind the credibility crisis in higher judiciary? Discuss.

The judiciary has undermined itself by an apparent inconstancy in the judgment which has dented its authority severely.
Irritants in Judicial Credibility

• There is an apparent absence of mechanism to address the matters of allegation of corruption within itself.
• The introduction of any anti-corruption measures has the danger of undermining the independence of judiciary.
• There is no provision of possibility of investigation by CBI as done with other government officers as it hurts the independence of judges.
• There is an obvious show of conflict of interest between higher ranks. This is a very dangerous preposition as it will severely dent the command structure in the ranks.

This can be extrapolated to the defaults in judicial appointments. NJAC which later was quashed was also been challenged on substantive grounds as the formation of super-majority had drastically denuded the primacy of judiciary. This was further aggravated by the absence of appointment criteria. All these factors do have had a major role to sabotage the whole institution of CJI and the judiciary at large.

Topics: GS-II: Various Issues Related to Executive Judiciary in India