SC Judges might have had non-resolvable grievances: Mukul Mudgal

Kolkata, Jan 14
Retired Haryana and Punjab Chief Justice Mukul Mudgal on Sunday said maybe the four seniormost SC judges, who accused Chief Justice Dipak Misra recently of breaching rules in assigning cases to appropriate benches, had their reasons to do so.

"I am not directly connected with this but maybe they had their grievances which they could not resolve. That's all I can say," Mudgal told IANS on the sidelines of Apeejay Kolkata Literary Festival here.

The four judges -- Justices K. Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan B. Lokur and Kurian Joseph -- on Friday took on the Chief Justice over allocation of cases, saying the administration of the top court was "not in order".

In New Delhi, former judges also put their weight behind four rebel judges in the apex court who have complained against the country's top judge by saying if junior judges are allowed to head benches in the Supreme Court, it will only harm the rule of law.

On Friday, at a hurriedly called press conference at his residence, Justice Chelameswar and three other colleagues said the Supreme Court administration was "not in order" and their efforts to persuade Justice Misra even that morning "with a specific request" failed, forcing them to "communicate with the nation" directly.

The four judges also released a letter they wrote to Justice Misra a couple of months ago, conceding that he was the master of roster but that was "not a recognition of any superior authority, legal or factual of the Chief Justice over his colleagues".