No comments: Law Min on Jayant Patel's resignation

Union Law Minister Ravishankar Prasad on Wednesday refused to comment on the quitting of Karnataka High Court judge Justice Jayant Patel following his transfer to Allahabad High Court.

"No comments. No proposal on transfer has been received by us," Prasad told reporters during a briefing on Cabinet meeting here.

He was asked about Patel's resignation and his remarks that he was not willing to go to Allahabad as he had just ten months more in service besides the protest by Gujarat High Court Bar Association against his transfer.

Patel, who had ordered a CBI probe into the Ishrat Jahan "fake" encounter case when he was in Gujarat High Court, is scheduled to retire in August next year.

If he was not transferred, Justice Patel would have taken over as acting Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court when incumbent Chief Justice S K Mukherjee retires on October 9.

He was also eligible to become a judge in the Supreme Court but a decision was deferred many times.