Government asks collegium to reconsider elevation of Justice KM Joseph to Supreme Court: Sources

The government has asked the collegium to reconsider the elevation of Justice KM Joseph to the Supreme Court, PTI has reported government sources as saying.

Joseph is currently Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court.

The Centre's decision to not clear Joseph's nomination as a Supreme Court judge is expected to set up a massive confrontation between the government and the judiciary.

The government had so far been sitting on Joseph's nomination along with that of Indu Malhotra's. Both names were recommended in January.

Malhotra's name however was cleared yesterday, making her the first woman to directly go from being a lawyer to a Supreme Court judge.

In a ruling in 2016, Justice Joseph had cancelled President's rule in Uttarakhand and brought back the Congress government of Harish Rawat to power. The judgement was seen as major set back to the BJP-ruled government at the Centre.

The government's decision of not approving Joseph's name has evoked sharp reactions with the Supreme Court Bar Association President terming it as "disturbing".
Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote to Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra this morning requesting the collegium, a group of five senior-most judges that selects judges for the apex court, to reconsider its decision on recommending Justice Joseph to be a judge of the top court.

Prasad also informed the CJI that senior advocate Malhotra has today been appointed a judge of the Supreme Court.

(With inputs from PTI)