Judge comes out in Anna support, addresses meet

In an unprecedented move, a Delhi district court judge on Wednesday came out openly in support of the Jan Lokpal Bill drafted by Anna Hazare and his civil society colleagues.

In an unprecedented move, a Delhi district court judge on Wednesday came out openly in support of the Jan Lokpal Bill drafted by Anna Hazare and his civil society colleagues.

HT Image

Senior civil judge Ajay Pandey went to Ramlila Maidan and even addressed the gathering. Maintaining that most of the institutions were under a cloud of suspicion, he favoured bringing the judiciary under the Lokpal ambit.

“I have not done anything wrong. It's not a political platform. I have only supported a social cause,” Pandey said, adding, “If a man (read Anna) is ready to sacrifice his life for the country, I am ready to face any action.”

The crowd responded with a round of applause when the judge spoke about Jan Lokpal Bill and corruption.

“Most of the lower judicial officers support the Jan Lokpal Bill,” Pandey, who sits at Tis Hazari Courts, told HT after addressing the gathering.

“There must be some public body, which can investigate the conduct of judges, who are also public servants like other government officials. The trend of erosion of credibility in judiciary needs to be arrested,” he said. Asked whether he feared any disciplinary action, he said, “I do not think I have done anything wrong. Anna is not fasting to demean the government. He is doing it to eradicate corruption.”

“It is a fight for the rights of the masses. I am abiding by my masters — the people.”

Delhi High Court sources said no action had been initiated against Pandey.