Essential for judges to lead lives with financial dignity, says SC

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday said judicial independence is necessary to preserve the faith and common citizens’ confidence in the rule of law, which can be ensured and enhanced as long as judges are able to live and lead their lives with a sense of financial dignity.

The top court underscored the importance of ensuring dignified working conditions for judicial officers, both during their tenure and post-retirement.

A bench of Chief Justice of India and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra pointed out the correlation between providing appropriate allowances to judges and safeguarding the independence of the judiciary.

The court was dealing with a matter related to the implementation of pay hikes for judicial officers recommended by the Second National Judicial Pay Commission (SNJPC).

The bench said, “The state is duty-bound to ensure that the conditions of service both during the tenure of office and upon retirement are commensurate with the need for dignity in terms of working conditions and post-retirement benefits made available to former judicial service candidates.”

The bench pointed out that the judicial officers worked beyond court hours for drafting judgments and engaging in various administrative functions, which formed integral aspects of a judicial officer’s responsibilities.

The court said that judicial officers worked both before and after court working hours.

The district judiciary is the first point of engagement for citizens who are confronted with the need for dispute resolution and the conditions in which judicial offices across the country work are to say the least arduous, it said.

The bench said it is a misnomer to postulate that the work of a judge is assessed in terms of the performance of duties during court working hours.

With regard to financial concerns raised by the states, the bench did not accept the argument that increased expenditure for maintaining proper conditions of service was a justifiable defence.

The apex court said the state is under an affirmative obligation to ensure dignified conditions of work to the judicial officers and it cannot justifiably raise the defence of increase in financial burden.

The bench made the observations as part of its order in 'All India Judges Association vs Union of India'.