75 Per Cent HC Judges Are From General Category, Law Ministry Tells Parliament
During the second day of the 2023 Monsoon Session of the Indian Parliament, Asaduddin Owaisi, the Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad, inquired the Ministry of Law and Justice about the representation of different castes and minorities among appointed judges in the High Courts. He highlighted that over the past five years, approximately 79 per cent of the judges appointed were from upper castes, indicating a lack of equitable representation for backward and minority communities. He also pointed out that only 2.6 percent of the total 537 judges appointed since 2018 were from sections other than upper castes. Additionally, he questioned whether the Government has urged the Chief Justice of India (CJI) and Chief Justices of High Courts to address the issue of social diversity and justice.
In response, the Ministry stated that according to information provided by the recommendees, out of 604 High Court Judges appointed since 2018, 458 belong to the General Category, 18 to Scheduled Castes (SC), 09 to Scheduled Tribes (ST), 72 to Other Backward Classes (OBC), and 34 to minority communities, while information for the remaining 13 judges is unavailable. The Ministry clarified that the appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts is carried out under Articles 124, 217, and 224 of the Constitution of India, which do not provide for reservation based on any specific caste or class.
However, the Ministry added that the Government has been actively requesting the Chief Justices of High Courts to consider suitable candidates from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Minorities, and Women when proposing candidates for judicial appointments, in order to ensure social diversity in the judicial system. The appointment process relies on the recommendations made by the Supreme Court Collegium, as per the Memorandum of Procedure for the appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts.
