Himachal: The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Himachal Pradesh High Court collegium to reconsider the names of two senior-most district and sessions judges for promotion as high court judges. The Supreme Court said that the Chief Justice of the High Court cannot reconsider a recommendation individually and it can only be done collectively by the High Court Collegium. A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and Prashant Kumar Mishra delivered its verdict on a petition filed by two senior-most district and sessions judges alleging that their merit and seniority were not considered by the High Court Collegium in selecting the names as high court judges. “There was no collective consultation and deliberation by the members of the High Court Collegium,” the bench said while pronouncing its verdict.
“In view of the above, the High Court Collegium is now required to reconsider the names of Chirag Bhanu Singh and Arvind Malhotra for elevation as High Court Judges in pursuance of the Supreme Court Collegium’s decision dated January 4, 2024…” During the hearing on May 13, the counsel appearing for the two judicial officers referred to the Supreme Court Collegium’s resolution dated January 4 and the subsequent communication sent by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice to the Himachal Pradesh High Court, and said that in accordance with these, the names of the petitioners should have been considered by the High Court Collegium. While pronouncing its verdict, the apex court bench said, “The decision of the Chief Justice of the High Court on the suitability of the two petitioners, as stated in his letter dated March 6, 2024, appears to be a personal decision.
