NJAC vs Collegium System: What the Debate is All About

All you need to know about the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act to understand the SC verdict.

Supreme Court of India. (Photo: Reuters)

The Supreme Court on Friday quashed the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act and also declared the 99th amendment to replace the Collegium system unconstitutional.

But what did the NJAC propose and how does the Collegium system work? What is the debate between the judiciary and the executive? Here’s a quick look at the facts that will help you understand the ongoing debate.

What is a Collegium System?

• A forum which decides on appointments and transfers of judges
• Comprises of the Chief Justice of India and the four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court
• It is born from ‘Three judges cases’ which gave primacy to the Chief Justice of India’s call on appointments or transfers; the President merely approves the CJI’s choice.
• Judiciary gets greater say than the executive on the appointments or transfers of judges.
• The system was evolved through Supreme Court judgments in the Three Judges Cases dated October 28, 1998

What is the NJAC?

• The National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) is a constitutional body proposed to replace the present Collegium system of appointing judges.
• It was established by amending the Constitution (99th Amendment) passed by the Lok Sabha on August 13, 2014 and by the Rajya Sabha on August 14, 2014.
• The Parliament also passed the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014, to regulate the NJAC’s functions.
• Both Bills were ratified by 16 state legislatures and the President gave his assent on December 31, 2014.
• The NJAC Act and the Constitutional Amendment Act came into force from April 13, 2015.

Composition of NJAC

• It consists of six people – the Chief Justice of India, the two most senior judges of the Supreme Court, the Law Minister, and two ‘eminent persons’.
• These eminent persons are to be nominated for a three-year term by a committee consisting of the Chief Justice, the Prime Minister, and the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and are not eligible for re-nomination.

What was the Contention?

• The contention was on two ‘eminent persons’ in the NJAC panel.
• One of the eminent persons nominated should be from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, minorities or women.
• The two eminent persons to be nominated for a period of three years and no re-nomination allowed.
• Nomination of two eminent persons to be finalised by a panel comprising the Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and the Leader of Opposition.
• According to Section 5 of the NJAC Act, if two members disagree with the recommendation, the Commission can’t make that recommendation.
• The petitioners say, the two nominated members can veto a decision of the NJAC and thus the government will control the NJAC’s decisions.