Ignoring protests by the Delhi High Court Bar Association, the Centre transferred Justice S Muralidhar of the Delhi High Court to the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The notification of Justice Muralidhar's transfer, who is the third-highest judge of the Delhi High Court, comes about two weeks after the recommendation by the Supreme Court collegium on 12 February.
"In exercise of the power conferred by Clause (1) of Article 222 of the Constitution of India, the President, after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, is pleased to transfer Justice S Muralidhar, Judge of the Delhi High Court, as a Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and to direct him to assume charge of his office in the Punjab and Haryana High Court," a release from the Ministry of Law and Justice on Wednesday evening said.
The Supreme Court had recommended his transfer two weeks ago (12 February). However, the Centre accepted the collegium's recommendation only on Wednesday, hours after Justice Muralidhar pulled up the Delhi Police for not acting against BJP leaders who made hate speeches ahead of Delhi riots.
Earlier on Wednesday, a high court bench headed by Justice Muralidhar passed a series of orders with regard to the violence in northeast Delhi and said that "another 1984-like situation cannot be allowed to happen in the city under its watch."
Just last week, day-to-day work came to a standstill as Delhi High Court lawyers abstained from work to protest against the transfer of Muralidhar to the Punjab and Haryana High Court, saying, "It is a rarest of rare case, the majesty of our revered institution is at stake." The Delhi High Court Bar Association protested the transfer of Justice Muralidhar and demanded the Supreme Court collegium to revisit the issue and recall the move to transfer him.
"Unequivocally and in the strongest possible terms, the Delhi High Court Bar Association condemns the said transfer effected by the collegium of the Supreme Court. Such transfers are not only detrimental to our noble institution but also tend to erode and dislodge the faith of the common litigant in the justice dispensation system," a release from the Bar Association said.
It said that the association hopes that the collegium revisits the issue and recalls the move to transfer the Justice.
Before being appointed as a judge in the Delhi High Court in 2006, Muralidhar practised law in the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court.
With inputs from ANI
from Firstpost India Latest News https://ift.tt/2I0BPxW
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