SC takes suo motu cognisance of Lokpal's order for examining corruption complaints against HC judges

New Delhi: The Supreme Court initiated suo motu proceedings on an order passed by the Lokpal, holding that it can examine corruption complaints against high court judges.

The Lokpal on January 27, 2025 sought guidance from the Chief Justice of India for looking into complaints filed against a sitting judge and an additional judge of one high court.

A special bench of Justices B R Gavai, Surya Kant and Abhay S Oka would take up the suo motu matter registered on Wednesday.

The Lokpal bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar sought guidance from the Chief Justice of India on complaints, going by the dictum of the Constitution bench in K Veeraswami's case (1991), which stated no criminal case can be registered against a judge of the high court, chief justice of the high hourt or judge of the Supreme Court unless Chief Justice of India is consulted in the matter.

The anti corruption body had earlier held that judges of the high court would be amenable to its jurisdiction to investigate allegations of corruption.

However, it had earlier on January 3, 2025 held that judges of the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice of India are not amenable to its jurisdiction as "they do not come within the sweep of definition of public servants and the Supreme Court has been established by the Constitution and not by an Act of Parliament."

In the instant matter, the two complaints were filed by the same complainant against a sitting Additional Judge (name redacted) of a high court, alleging that the named judge had influenced the concerned Additional District judge in the state and a judge of the same high court who had to deal with the suit filed against the complainant by a private company, to favour that company. It was alleged that the private company was earlier client of the named high court judge, while he was practicing as an advocate at the Bar.

"We make it amply clear that by this order we have decided a singular issue finally as to whether the judges of the high court established by an Act of Parliament come within the ambit of Section 14 of the Act of 2013, in the affirmative. No more and no less. In that, we have not looked into or examined the merits of the allegations at all," the Lokpal had said in the order.

The Lokpal had then deferred consideration of the complaints for four weeks, awaiting the guidance from the Chief Justice of India.