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PCS ParikshanBihar Switch to Hindi
Acting CJ of Patna HC
Shri Justice Sudhir Singh has been appointed as the Acting Chief Justice of the Patna High Court by the Collegium System, following the retirement of Chief Justice Pavankumar Bhimappa Bajanthri.
- Article 223 of the Constitution of India allows the President to appoint a Judge of a High Court as acting Chief Justice when the office is vacant or the Chief Justice is absent or unable to perform duties.
Collegium System
- About: It is India’s system for appointing and transferring Supreme Court and High Court judges, evolved from landmark Supreme Court judgments like the Three Judges Cases, not directly from the Constitution.
- Evolution:
- First Judges Case (1981): SC ruled that consultation in Articles 124(2) & 217 did not mean concurrence, giving the executive primacy in judicial appointments.
- Second Judges Case (1993): SC overruled the first, stating CJI’s advice on appointments is binding on the President, after consulting the two senior-most judges, leading to the Collegium System.
- Third Judges Case (1998): SC expanded the Collegium to include the CJI and four senior-most judges; HC Collegium includes the Chief Justice and two senior-most judges. The government can raise objections, but appointments by Collegium are binding if reiterated.
- National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC): It was a proposed constitutional body under the 99th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2014, intended to replace the Collegium System with a transparent, merit-based process.
- In the Fourth Judges Case (2015)—Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association vs Union of India—the Supreme Court struck it down as unconstitutional, citing excessive executive involvement and a threat to judicial independence.
