Indian govt to block elevation of justice

NEW DELHI: The centre is reluctant to clear the elevation of Uttarakhand Chief Justice KM Joseph as a Supreme Court judge, sources told media, what appears to be setting up a face-off between the government and the Supreme Court.

A committee of the country's five senior-most judges headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra had made a strong recommendation to appoint Justice Joseph, who set aside President's rule in the hill state in 2016, as a Supreme Court judge.

On January 10, the committee, formally called the collegium, had described Justice Joseph as "more deserving and suitable in all respects than other Chief Justices" and senior judges of High Courts for being appointed as Judges of the Supreme Court of India.

The recommendation sent to the government noted that the collegium had taken into consideration combined seniority on all-India basis of Chief Justices and senior judges of High Courts, apart from their merit and integrity.