Judicial Accountability Bill to be taken up in LS on Wednesday

The much-talked about Judicial Accountability Bill that will provide for accountability of judges and establish a credible mechanism for investigating individual complaints of misbehaviour will be taken up by the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Pawan Kumar Bansal said the Lok Sabha will take up the Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, and also the Bill providing for increasing the retirement age of High Court judges from the present 62 years to 65 years.

The Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2010, seeks to lay down judicial standards and provide for accountability of judges and establish a credible and expedient mechanism for investigating into individual complaints for misbehaviour or incapacity of a judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court and to regulate the procedure for such investigation.

It also proposes to form a panel to incorporate a provision to have in-camera proceedings of the committee which will scrutinise complaints against judges.

The Judicial Accountability Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha last year and was then sent to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Law and Justice.

A key recommendation of the committee that seeks to "restrain" judges from making "unwarranted comments" against other constitutional bodies or persons in courts.