Three High Court judges, including one from Delhi, were transferred on Saturday after the Supreme Court collegium rejected their request for a choice posting days earlier. Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal took to Twitter to announce the transfer of three judges Dinesh Kumar Singh, Manoj Bajaj, and Gaurang Kanth. Meghwal said the President of India, after consultation with Chief Justice of India transferred all these judges while exercising the power conferred by the Constitution of India to her.
He announced that Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh of the Allahabad High Court was transferred to the Kerala High Court, Justice Manoj Bajaj of the Punjab and Haryana High Court was posted to the Allahabad HC, and Justice Gaurang Kanth of Delhi High Court was transferred to the Calcutta High Court by the collegium headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud.
On July 12, the Supreme Court collegium reiterated its recommendations for transferring all three judges despite their representations for choice posting, reported PTI. Justice Kanth made a representation on July 7, 2023, requesting for his transfer to the Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan High Court, or a court in any of the neighbouring states.
According to the collegium, "In terms of the Memorandum of Procedure, the collegium consulted one of the Judges of the Supreme Court, who being conversant with the affairs of the High Court of Delhi, is in a position to offer views on the proposed transfer. We have carefully gone through the request made by Justice Gaurang Kanth in his representation and bestowed our thoughtful consideration to the contents thereof.”
However, the Collegium said in its resolution it did not find any merit in Justice Kanths’s request, PTI reported.
Meanwhile, a bar body had also expressed its opposition to the transfer of Justice Kanth.
In a separate decision, the collegium reiterated its recommendation to transfer Allahabad High Court judge Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh to the Kerala High Court for better administration of justice.
Justice Singh also submitted a representation on July 11, 2023, requesting his transfer to nearby states such as the high courts of Delhi, Punjab & Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, or Rajasthan.
However, the collegium said, "We have carefully gone through the request made by Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh in his representation and bestowed our thoughtful consideration to the contents thereof. The Collegium does not find any merit in the request made by him," as quoted by PTI.
Moreover, in the third case involving Justice Bajaj, the collegium reiterated its recommendation to transfer Punjab & Haryana High Court judge Justice Manoj Bajaj to the Allahabad High Court presenting a similar response. "The Collegium does not find any merit in the request made by him. The Collegium, therefore, resolves to reiterate its recommendation dated July 5, 2023, to transfer Justice Manoj Bajaj to the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad,” it stated, as per PTI.