Is judiciary accountable?

The answer to this moot question is found in the Constitution itself.

Whether judiciary is accountable for its decisions? And if yes, to whom are the moot questions. The answer to this is found in the Constitution itself. A judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court can be impeached on the ground of proved misbehaviour or incapacity. The power to impeach a judge is vested in Parliament vide Articles 124(4) and 217(1)(b).

HT Image

In the case of judge's impeachment, Parliament acts as a judicial body and its members must decide the guilt or otherwise of the judge facing the indictment objectively. They should be influenced by extraneous considerations in this regard.

When such a judicial function is discharged by Parliament, it is highly debatable whether political parties can issue whips directing members to vote in a particular manner. An interesting case study in this regard is the impeachment proceedings against Shri Justice V. Ramaswamy, which ended unsuccessfully.