INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Sabha Chairman and Vice President Venkaiah Naidu today rejected the Congress-led motion to impeach the Chief Justice of India
Mr Naidu's role was to either accept or reject the motion that was submitted to him by 64 Rajya Sabha lawmakers, mostly from the Congress
The move, seen by many as "an attack on the judiciary and the high office of the Chief Justice of India", was rejected reportedly because of
"lack of substantial merit in it." Mr Naidu, who was in Hyderabad, cut short his visit and returned to Delhi on Sunday afternoon for
Sources in the Congress say now that the motion has been rejected, they would approach the Supreme Court
The opposition notice -- carrying signatures of 71 lawmakers from seven parties -- was submitted to Mr Naidu on Friday
Misra Impeachment Motion: What Eminent Jurist And Former Attorney General Of India Soli Sorabjee SaidEminent jurist and former Attorney
General of India Soli Sorabjee today welcomed Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu's decision to reject the impeachment notice against
Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, saying he has "rightly applied his mind".Mr Sorabjee said the Vice President of India has found no merit
in the notice given by opposition parties led by the Congress for impeachment and has consulted legal experts before arriving at the
decision."The Vice President has applied his mind
He has consulted legal experts and has come to a decision
We did not want the matter hanging indefinitely," he said."He (Venkaiah Naidu) has gone into the matter and has found no merit in it and no
ground for impeachment, therefore, he rejected it," Mr Sorabjee told a TV channel.When asked about the procedure ahead if the opposition
moves the Supreme Court to challenge Venkaiah Naidu's decision, Mr Sorabjee said he did not see the petition succeeding."I don't see
chances of the writ petition (challenging the VP's decision) succeeding," he said.Mr Naidu has rejected the impeachment notice against CJI
Dipak Misra, citing lack of substantial merit in it."We cannot allow any of our pillars of governance to be weakened by any thought, word or
action," the Vice President said in his order.Seven opposition parties led by the Congress had last week moved a notice before him for
impeachment of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) on five grounds of "misbehavior".This is the first time ever that an impeachment notice has
been filed against a Chief Justice of India.Leaders of the opposition parties had met Venkaiah Naidu last Friday and handed over the notice
of impeachment against the CJI bearing signatures of 64 MPs and seven former members, who recently retired.The parties had briefed the media
after handing over the notice to the Upper House chairman.(Source: Press Trust of India)Work As Usual - Chief Justice Of India, Other Judges
Undertake Court ProceedingsSupreme Court judges, including Chief Justice Dipak Misra, today initiated court proceedings at 10:45 am instead
of the scheduled 10:30 am, amid speculation that they held a brief meeting on the issue of the impeachment notice against the Chief Justice
of India.CJI Dipak Misra, who usually holds his court at 10:30 am, entered the courtroom almost 15 minutes late and started hearing lawyers
who wanted their petitions to be listed for urgent mentioning.BJP leader Subramanian Swamy was among the first few litigants to mention his
petition for urgent hearing.The Chief Justice of India's courtroom was packed with lawyers including those who had no matters to argue for
Besides the CJI, all other courts sat late at 10:45 am to undertake today's court proceedings
Speculation was rife among lawyers that judges held a brief, informal meeting before they started today's business.Rajya Sabha Chairman M
Venkaiah Naidu today rejected the notice given by opposition parties led by the Congress for impeachment of the CJI, citing lack of
substantial merit in it.Vice President Naidu held extensive consultations with top legal and constitutional experts, including former chief
justices and judges, before taking the decision, sources said.The rejection of the notice comes a day after he held the consultations to
determine the maintainability of the motion.(Source: Press Trust of India) Former Secretary General of the Lok Sabha, Subhash Kashyap says,
"I have not seen the order of the Rajya Sabha Chairman but I think the notice for impeachment (by Congress-led opposition) was malafide and
No prima facie case was made against the Chief Justice of India
I think MPs of Rajya Sabha should have acted responsibly while making allegations against the Chief Justice of India."10 Important Updates
On The Impeachment Motion Against Chief Justice Of India Dipak MisraHere are 10 important updates on the impeachment motion against Chief
Justice of India Dipak Misra:"We cannot allow any of our pillars of governance to be weakened by any thought, word or action," said Mr
Naidu, ascribing his quick decision to the severity of the charges directed at the Chief Justice and unnecessary speculation.Sources say Mr
Naidu consulted legal and constitutional experts till late last evening and also spoke to K Parasaran, who was the attorney general during
the Congress governments led by Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.Supreme Court judges, including Chief Justice Dipak Misra, today initiated
court proceedings at 10.45 AM instead of the scheduled 10.30 AM amid speculation that they held a brief meeting on the issue of the
impeachment notice against the CJI.The 64 Rajya Sabha members who signed the impeachment notice are likely to challenge the rejection in the
Supreme Court.The Chief Justice of India and other judges were 15 minutes late to court today amid speculation that they met briefly to
discuss the impeachment move."Expectedly, Mr Naidu rejected impeachment motion
Unexpectedly, he did so within one day of returning from outstation
Hopefully, the alacrity was not intended to render infructuous calls for CJI to stop administrative work," tweeted Congress leader Abhishek
Manu Singhvi.The opposition notice had signatures of 71 lawmakers from seven parties but seven have retired since
Senior Congress leaders like former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and P Chidambaram did not sign the notice.Union Minister Arun Jaitley
called the impeachment notice a "revenge petition", accusing the "Congress and its friends" of using as a "political tool" the impeachment
notice against the Chief Justice, who retires in six months.The Constitution says the Chief Justice of India can be impeached only on
grounds of proved misbehaviour or incapacity.The opposition backed its demand listing five grounds, which, the Congress said, equals
These included the assigning of sensitive cases to handpicked judges, which was raised publicly in January by four top judges who accused
the Chief Justice of abusing his position as "master of the roster"
The trigger for their press conference was the Judge BH Loya death case, which was later reassigned.Here's What HappenedA move led by the
Congress to impeach the Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra, has been blocked by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu, who said it "lacked
As Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, Mr Naidu decided this morning to reject a motion signed by over 60 parliamentarians, which called for
Justice Misra's impeachment six months before he retires.The notice has "virtually no concrete verifiable imputation and doesn't deserve
to be admitted", Mr Naidu said in a 10-page order
The Congress' attempt has been criticised by top jurists including Fari Nariman who say that it would set a dangerous precedent - for
example, a ruling party or the Opposition could attempt to remove a Chief Justice if it doesn't agree with his decisions or verdicts
Chief Justice Dipak Misra is hearing cases as usual at the Supreme Court today.Why Vice President Venkaiah Naidu Rejected The Congress-Led
Motion To Impeach The Chief Justice Of India Dipak MisraIn a signed order which was shared with the media, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu
stated: "The allegations emerging from the present case have a serious tendency of undermining the independence of judiciary which is the
basic tenet of the Constitution of India."The order also stated that "Considering the totality of facts, I am of the firm opinion that it is
neither legal nor desirable or proper to admit the notice of motion on any of these grounds."(Photo: Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra,
against whom the Congress and its allies had moved a motion to try and impeach him)BJP Lawmaker Meenakshi Lekhi Speaks TO After Motion To
Impeach CJI Dipak Misra Is Rejected By Vice PresidentIn an interview to , BJP lawmaker Meenakshi Lekhi slammed the Congress' move to try and
impeach the Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra
Here is what Ms Lekhi said:The Congress is trying to run the government from the corridors of the Supreme Court of India, rather than the
Parliament.The office of the Vice President of India - by virtue of being the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, exercises decision making
It is not a post office.I express gratitude to the Vice President for applying his mind and rightly rejecting the motion to impeach the
Varun Kumar Sinha, who moved a petition against the Congress-led motion to impeach the Chief Justice of India, said: "I am thankful to the
Vice President who has saved the institution (Supreme Court and Chief Justice of India) from getting maligned by one party (Congress) and
If you go through the Judge's Enquiry Act, the Vice President has discretion to admit and refuse
The Vice President has found no material to justify the motion and has therefore rejected the motion."What Former Speaker of the Lok Sabha
Somnath Chatterjee Said After Motion To Impeach CJI Dipak Misra Was Rejected By Vice PresidentFormer Speaker of the Lok Sabha Somnath
Chatterjee said, "It is well within the Vice President's power (to reject such a motion - to try and impeach the Chief Justice of India)
The Motion has to be approved by both Houses (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha)
This was a controversial attempt
The step should not have been taken without support of the majority
Would have been a great set back to the Judiciary, and its respect among the people
Happy that it puts an end to the matter."Bar Council Of India Chairman Manan Mishra's Reaction After Motion To Impeach CJI Dipak Misra Was
Rejected By Vice PresidentIn his scathing criticism of the Congress-led motion to try and impeach the Chief Justice of India, Bar Council of
India Chairman Manan Mishra said, "There couldn't be another decision (of rejection the motion) on this issue
He (Vice President Naidu) applied his mind, consulted legal experts and took the decision thereafter
Think citizens are happy with the decision
Nobody would stop them from moving against the decision but they know the result, no judge, no prudent lawyer would accept their plea
Can a judgement form basis for a motion Everybody knows there was political intent behind this, with an eye on 2019
Request the Judiciary to not be made a tool for political gains."Renowned Indian Jurist Fali Nariman's Reaction After The Motion To
Impeach Chief Justice Of India Was RejectedCriticizing the Congress-led move to try and impeach the Chief Justice of India, renowned Indian
jurist Fali Nariman told , "Here is a man (CJI Dipak Misra) who is remitting office in October or November
It is most unlikely that the matter (of impeachment) would conclude till then
Therefore the question is, why was the Motion brought in the first place I can understand if he (CJI Dipak Misra) had years left
I am not thinking about Chief Justice Mishra, I am thinking about the Supreme Court of India
it is the institution that is being denigrated.Activist Lawyer Prashant Bhushan Makes Serious Allegation Against Vice President Of India
Venkaiah NaiduActivist lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who has been supporting Congress' plea to remove the Chief Justice of India from the high
office, made serious allegations against the Vice President of India, saying: "It is astounding that the Vice President has rejected such a
serious impeachment motion which carried serious charges
The Vice President has no business to go into the merits of the case, it is for the enquiry committee to decide
This is totally illegal and malafide
It is a political decision taken to protect the Vice President and to even avoid an enquiry into these charges which is what the
Constitution requires."Motion To Impeach CJI Dipak Misra Rejected By Vice President: First Reaction From The BJPBJP leader Vikas Bose also
reacted after the motion to impeach the Chief Justice of India was rejected by Vice President Venkaiah Naidu
Mr Bose said, "The motion has been rightly rejected by the Vice President
Congress is always into negativism
We have no reason to doubt the honesty and integrity of the Chief Justice of India
The Opposition is playing up a non-issue and have the motion passed
The Vice President has sent a clear message, that such negativism and attempt to create confusion would not be accepted."Motion To Impeach
CJI Dipak Misra Rejected By Vice President: First Reaction From The BJPReacting to the impeachment motion of against the Chief Justice of
India being rejected, BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli said, "Judiciary has to be independent
It is a critical part of the Constitution
The Congress can claim no moral ground, they appointed pliant judges
The Judiciary is an institute of eminence, they don't require advocates of political parties to tell them how it should be run."Motion To
Impeach CJI Dipak Misra Rejected By Vice President: First Reaction From The CongressReacting to the impeachment motion of against the Chief
Justice of India being rejected, Congress leader PL Punia said, "This is a really important matter
We don't know what was the reason for the rejection
Congress and other opposition parties will talk to some legal experts and take the next step."What Venkaiah Naidu Said After Rejecting The
Congress-Led Motion To Impeach The Chief Justice Of IndiaAccording to news agency ANI, Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice President of India
Venkaiah Naidu said, "I have applied my mind to all 5 charges made out in impeachment motion and have examined all annexed documents
All facts as stated in the motion don't make out a case which can lead any reasonable mind to conclude that the Chief Justice of India on
these facts can ever be held guilty of misbehavior."Vice President Naidu went on to say, "After having perused annexures to the motion, and
having detailed consultations as well as having studied opinions of constitutional experts, I am satisfied that admission of the notice of
impeachment motion against the Chief Justice of India is neither desirable nor proper." The opposition notice -- carrying signatures of 71
lawmakers from seven parties -- was submitted to Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu on Friday
Seven of the lawmakers have retired since, but the number of signatures is still well above the mandatory 50, the Congress said
Venkaiah Naidu, who was in Hyderabad, cut short his visit and returned to Delhi on Sunday afternoon for consultations
Sources in the Congress say now that the motion has been rejected, they would approach the Supreme Court
Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice President Venkaiah Naidu today rejected the Congress-led motion to impeach the Chief Justice of India
Mr Naidu's role was to either accept or reject the motion that was submitted to him by 64 Rajya Sabha lawmakers, mostly from the Congress
The move, seen by many as "an attack on the judiciary and the high office of the Chief Justice of India", was rejected reportedly because of
"lack of substantial merit in it."
