Our Correspondent /
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said Supreme Court judgement on National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) has only upheld the primacy of independence of judiciary but has ignored the larger constitutional structure of the country.
In a Facebook post in his personal capacity Mr. Jaitley wrote the judgement has diminished the other basic structures of the Constitution. He said Indian democracy cannot be a tyranny of the unelected and it would be in danger if the elected are undermined.
Mr. Jaitley’s observations come in the wake of Supreme Court turning down as unconstitutional the 99th Constitutional amendment passed by the parliament unanimously and approved by 20 State legislatures for setting up the National Judicial Appointments Commission for appointment of Judges.
Expressing his views on the judgment, Mr Jaitley said a constitutional court, while interpreting the Constitution, had to base the judgement on constitutional principles. The court can only interpret, it cannot be the third chamber of legislature to rewrite a law, he said.
Mr Jaitely asked are not institutions like the Election Commission and the CAG credible enough even though they are appointed by elected Governments? Expressing concern about the independence of judiciary and the sovereignty of India’s Parliament, the Finance minister opined that the two can and must co exist.
He wrote independence of judiciary is an important basic structure of the Constitution. Mr Jaitley further added to strengthen judiciary , one does not have to weaken Parliamentary sovereignty, which is the soul of India’s democracy.