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CJI slams Supreme Court’s registry, vows ‘deeper reform’
The Supreme Court’s administrative machinery came under the scrutiny on Thursday as Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant declared that he would launch a “deeper probe” into the registry for allowing similar petitions to travel to different benches despite past dismissals.
The Supreme Court’s administrative machinery came under the scrutiny on Thursday as Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant declared that he would launch a “deeper probe” into the registry for allowing similar petitions to travel to different benches despite past dismissals.
“If I don’t bring reform here before I demit office, I will fail in my duty,” said the CJI, in one of his strongest public rebukes of the registry yet, while signalling an administrative churn ahead. Justice Kant is due to retire in February 2027.
The remarks came after Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, representing the Uttar Pradesh government in the matter, placed before the court an order showing that a similar challenge had earlier been dismissed by a three-judge bench. Visibly disturbed, the CJI said he would initiate a “deeper probe” into how the matter came to be listed again.
“Let me examine this on the administrative side…how the case was listed. This is the problem when you divide this court into different benches…it is disturbing…When a bench has expressed an opinion, how is that case travelling to another bench?”, said the CJI, presiding the bench, also comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi.
Justice Kant added that he was “shocked” by what he had recently discovered about the registry’s functioning. “The registry officials think they are here for 20 years…and we are all in the transit stage and they are permanent. They think the registry should function the way they want,” he remarked.
The bench was hearing a plea challenging the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986, on the ground that it is repugnant to Section 111 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Senior advocate Shoeb Alam appeared for the petitioner.
A similar petition filed by Siraj Ahmad Khan is pending before a bench of justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan. In that backdrop, the petitioner in the present case, Irfan Solanki, sought tagging of his petition with the pending matter.
However, ASG Nataraj pointed out that a comparable challenge had earlier been dismissed – not once but twice, since 2022.
At this, Alam sought to withdraw the petition if the court was not inclined to tag it with the other matter pending before Justice Pardiwala’s bench or entertain it, but the CJI insisted that it remain on board. Alam was also requested to assist the bench.
