The jury is still out on Karnataka chief justice P.D. Dinakaran, who has been embroiled in controversy ever since he was recommended for promotion to the Supreme Court in August this year.
Asked if Dinakaran had been dropped from the list of five chief justices recommended for elevation, as stated in a section of the press, Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan on Sunday denied it.
“We have only asked that the names of the four other judges should be processed for appointment to the Supreme Court," Balakrishnan told reporters.
Asked how could Justice Dinakaran continued to hold office despite the Tamil Nadu government’s report indicting him for land grabbing, Justice Balakrishnan refused to comment.
Justice Dinakaran, who had earlier met the chief justice to explain his position, has denied all allegations against him.
Hindustan Times was the first to report on the objections raised by eminent jurists to Dinakaran’s proposed promotion. Chief Justice Balakrishnan has since ordered a probe.