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Difficulty: HardIndian Judiciary: Supreme Court, High Courts, Judicial Review, and PIL

With reference to the constitutional framework and statutory provisions governing the removal of a High Court Judge in India, which of the following statements are correct?

  1. A High Court judge can only be removed from office by an order of the President on the grounds of proved misbehaviour or incapacity, following the same procedure prescribed for a Supreme Court judge.Answer
  2. B
    The Speaker of the Lok Sabha or the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha is constitutionally mandated to admit any removal motion once the minimum required member signatures are verified.
  3. Upon admission of a removal motion, the investigation into the charges is conducted by a statutory three-member committee consisting of a Supreme Court judge, a High Court Chief Justice, and a distinguished jurist.Answer
  4. D
    The President can issue a removal order based directly on a unanimous recommendation from the Collegium headed by the Chief Justice of India without parliamentary address.

Answer

The correct statements are that a High Court judge is removed following the same procedure and grounds as a Supreme Court judge, and that the statutory investigation upon admission of the removal motion is conducted by a three-member committee comprising a Supreme Court judge, a High Court Chief Justice, and a distinguished jurist.
The removal mechanism for High Court judges is constitutionally anchored in Article 217(1) proviso (b), which mandates identical grounds and procedure as Article 124(4) for Supreme Court judges. Furthermore, the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 prescribes that upon admission of a removal notice, a statutory three-member panel comprising a Supreme Court judge, a High Court Chief Justice, and a distinguished jurist must investigate the charges.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Examine the constitutional relationship between High Court and Supreme Court judge removal procedures.
Article 217(1) proviso (b) explicitly links the removal of a High Court judge to Article 124(4), establishing identical grounds ('proved misbehaviour or incapacity') and identical procedure.
Constitutional provisions guarantee judicial independence by ensuring uniform removal security across higher judiciary.
2
Analyze the statutory procedure under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 regarding motion admission and investigation committee composition.
The Presiding Officer of the House has the legal discretion to accept or reject the motion. If admitted, a 3-member committee (Supreme Court judge, High Court Chief Justice, and distinguished jurist) investigates the charges.
Parliamentary statutory procedure regulates the investigation details prior to voting on the address.
3
Evaluate the requirement of parliamentary address and executive power limits.
The President cannot act on Collegium recommendations for removal; an address passed by special majorities in both Houses of Parliament during the same session is an indispensable constitutional prerequisite.
Executive interference in judicial removal is prohibited to preserve separation of powers.

Key Concept

Constitutional and statutory framework for the removal of higher judiciary judges under Article 124(4), Article 217, and the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968.
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Topics

Indian Judiciary: Supreme Court, High Courts, Judicial Review, and PIL

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