Supreme Court's verdict

♤ The Court struck down the amendment and concluded that NJAC did “not provide an adequate representation, to the judicial component”.

♤ The new provision in Constitution are insufficient to preserve the primacy of the judiciary in the matter of selection and appointment of Judges”

♤ It was held that the amendment impinged upon the principles of “independence of the judiciary”, as well as, the “separation of powers”.

After quashing the proposed National Judicial Appointments Commission, Supreme Court’s Constitution Bench had asked the Centre to consult the CJI for drafting the new memorandum for appointments of judges to the higher judiciary. Acting on the above a Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by External Affairs Minister had finalized the new Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for appointment of Judges

3.1.2.3. Memorandum of Procedure (MOP):

The government drafted a Memorandum of Procedure in 2016 to set a fresh set of guidelines for making appointments to the higher judiciary. However, there is lack of agreement between government and judiciary as of now.

The procedure of appointment judges by promotion under the MOP has been depicted in the infographic.